Comrade in Arms
by Personification of Fluff
Summary: AU, SM. [Complete!] Miroku and Sango have been reincarnated into the future. Was the last life time just a fluke, or are these two souls really meant to be together? Only time will tell!
1. No More I love Yous

Comrade in Arms

**Rating:** PG for now, for potty mouths!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Inuyasha. But I do own this story. I swear I do. ::scribbles fake legal documents and waves her fairy wand to make them real::

**Summary:** Miroku and Sango have been reincarnated into the future. Wow. That's the plot. No, wait, there _is_ more! When they meet, they completely hate each other! Was the last life time just a fluke, or are these two souls really meant to be together? Only time will tell!

**Author's Notes:**

This is the sequel to _Complete and Unconditional_. Even if you don't want to go read the story, I'd suggest reading the last chapter so that you know exactly what happens to Miroku and Sango at the end of their lives. How the die (Everyone dies in the end, don't tell me I ruined it for you.) has a lot to do with their opinions and attitudes in this life time, even if they don't remember their past lives. Because the problem is that they _don't_ remember them! ::smiles::

As for a notes on the names: Konseki means 'past and present' or 'tonight', Kei means 'strong', I think… my dictionary doesn't want to work with me anymore. Aisowotsukasu means 'to be disgusted with love', and Fukou means 'accident'.

As for anybody who says that they aren't in character (because they AREN'T—I can't stress that enough!) they have been reincarnated. They aren't the same person. If you died and then were reborn without any memories of your past life, into a period of time with different morals, values, ideas, trends, practically a whole other _culture_, and into a whole new family, would you be the same person? I think not!

Enough rambling from me. Let's get this show on the road!

_No more "I love you's", the language is leaving me._

_No more "I love you's", the language is leaving me in silence  
No more "I love you's", changes are shifting outside the word.  
Outside the word_

-Annie Lennox, No More I Love Yous.

Chapter One: No More I Love Yous

_"Do you believe, Miroku, that there is only one person for everyone?"_ –Sango, 500 years ago

Five year old Konseki Kei sat huddled in the back of the moving car. Her blue eyes watched the houses fly by, and she pouted. Kei didn't want to move. She liked her old house in Okinawa. But her father had gotten a good job in Tokyo, and so they had to move. She hugged her teddy bear closer. "Tokyo smells," she told her parents.

Her mother chuckled, turning to look at her little daughter. "You're just used to home, Kei-chan. Just wait until we get settled in the new house and I can start baking and cooking again. I'll bake so many goodies that you'll turn fat!" She tickled her daughter's feet as her husband turned the corner.

Curling up tighter, not in the mood for her mother's playfulness, Kei thought back to the dream she had on the way from Okinawa to Tokyo. She'd had it often enough, but she had never said anything about it to her parents. She wasn't sure what it meant, and she didn't want her parents to look at her strangely. Once, when she had gotten a cold as a younger girl, she had feverishly screamed out things that she had never heard of before, names of people and foreign places, screams of anguish and of pain, clutching wounds that weren't there. At one point, Kei had looked up at her mother and begged to know where her brother had gone.

Her mother had never forgotten the look of horror on her daughter's face, of agony, when she told Kei that she didn't have a brother.

No, Kei never told anyone about her dreams. She heard a man's voice in her sleep. It was deep, it echoed in her mind, but it was soothing. In that respect, in its tone and the way it caused her heart to slow and her body to relax, it reminded her of her father's voice. But… there was something else to it as well. Some feeling that Kei couldn't understand… But she would! Someday…

_This one starts many, many years in the future. There, there was a young girl who was very pretty, but she had very bad dreams. This girl, you see, was a reincarnation of a girl who lived very, very long ago. She was so distracted, thinking about the strapping young monk in her dreams that she got herself into a spot of trouble_

_She stared at the young man who had saved her. She was awe-struck, her heart pounding in her chest. She was in love._

Kei loved shrines. She didn't know why. Whenever her mother, Sora, had suggested that they go for a walk, Kei always begged and pleaded her mother to take her to shrines. At first Sora had been hesitant about bringing a four year old to a shrine, but finally, she had relented. Kei had been perfectly behaved. She had maintained perfect etiquette, and she had bowed her head and prayed. The only thing was, Kei hadn't really prayed. She'd bowed her head and clasped her hands together, but that was it.

She hadn't known what she was supposed to say…

The houses continued rolling by, and then, suddenly, a break. Trees. Then, a flash of red. Kei leaned up, pressing her hands and nose to the window pane just in time to see the Shinto shrine gates move out of her line of sight. She felt the car slowed and she grinned. "A shrine! Daddy, are we living right beside a shrine?"

"We're a few doors down from it, but yes, Kei-chan, we are."

As soon as the car stopped, she fumbled with the seat-belt, unable to control her eagerness to see the shrine. She hopped out of the car, accidentally slamming the car door and receiving a warning look from her father. She winced. "Sorry, Daddy! But please, can I go see the shrine? I promise I'll be quick, and it's just three houses down, so I won't be gone long or get lost or anything!"

Her parents looked at each other. They seemed to have a silent conversation. Her father nodded. "Okay, Kei, you can go and see the shrine. But you have to be back in twenty minutes at the most, understand?" Kei nodded eagerly. Her father gave her a pointed look. "How long is twenty minutes from now?"

She looked down at the watch she wore, wrinkling her nose as she tried to think. She was starting to learn time, but watches were funny things. All those hands… Kei was really smart though. She was so short that people thought she was three rather than five, but then she spoke and they thought she was at least seven. People looked at her and chuckled, their eyes filling up with pity. 'What a smart little girl!' they said to each other, thinking Kei couldn't hear. 'Too bad that her brain is all she has going for her. Who would have thought that two beautiful people like Sora and Fai would have such a disagreeable looking child?'

"Is it when the big hand is one the four?"

"No, honey, that's twenty-past. You have to take what time it is now and add on twenty minutes, remember?"

"Right."

'Disagreeable'. Whenever Kei saw herself in the mirror, she tried to understand what people meant when they said she was disagreeable looking. She didn't like what she saw, and maybe all the remarks had something to do with it.

No matter how hard she tried, she could never get all the grease out of her hair, and her mother sighed, telling Kei that she had her grandmother's hair. Her nose was a little too large for her face, though it looked perfectly fine on her father's. Her eyes were a light shade of blue that people called pretty, but then they told her to enjoy it while it lasted because time would wash away the color and make them lifeless grey. Her hair was black, and flat, and compared to her smile and the tan on her skin from being outside so much, it felt like a dead rug on her head, as she had once told her parents.

Why couldn't she look like her mother? Sora was tall and stately, keeping her long thick hair tied up in a proper bun, with lips that her father said belonged on an angel, and blue eyes so bright they could be used as weapons in her glares; yes, sapphire weapons.

"I have to be back when the big hand is on the eleven!" When her father nodded that this was correct, she kissed him quickly, waved to her mother and disappeared, heading to the shrine.

Sora looked at Fai, smiling at him gently. He blushed, and tossed her the duffel back from the back of the car. Laughing, Sora pick pocketed the keys from his back pocket where he had absentmindedly left them, unlocking the door to their new house. She heard barking from the direction of the shrine, but it was cut off as her husband shut the door, placed his suitcases on the ground and then scooped his wife up in his arms. "We have ten minutes before the moving van arrives," he purred into his wife's ear. "Shall we break in the bedroom?"

* * *

Aisowotsukasu Fukou heard yelling from downstairs. He slammed his comic book shut, leaving behind the stories for a time when he could really enjoy them. He looked at his dog, her ears already drawing back as he heard doors slam and glass break from downstairs. Why did they always fight?

His bottom still hurt from the last time he had disappeared during one of his parents' fights. They had discovered him missing, and hunted all over for him. When they had found him, safely back at home, his father's fury had woken up again and he had gotten penalized for leaving and not telling his parents where he had gone.

'It wasn't a beating,' his parents told themselves. 'It was a punishment. It was a little harder than what was probably necessary for a six year old boy, but that was just because we never want this to happen again. We thought something terrible had happened!'

So his parents fit the reason to the punishment, and he had gone to bed without any supper. That had been three weeks ago. He bit his lip and opened up his bedroom window. His dog leapt out of the window, knowing what was coming. Looking at the notepad on his desk, he wondered if he should leave a note. He was just going to the Higurashi shrine, and besides, he didn't really want to tell his parents where he was going anyway. Then they would find the one spot he had some piece and quiet in, and they would tell Kagome about all the stuff he had done when he was little, and then Kagome might never let him go back to the shrine. Fukou couldn't deal with that.

The shrine was his sanctuary.

He glanced at himself in the mirror, and wanted to break it. He looked too much like his father, like the bad apple he was. Fukou tried to wear only dark colors, not really because he liked the color, but because it was easiest to hide blood or dirt with black, that way his parents would never see he had been playing outside again, or roughhousing with his friends. His hair was disheveled from reading comic books, a darker shade of black that his mother called ebony. His eyes were startling green; at least he had his mother's eyes, but he found them filled with hatred at life instead of looking scared and kind like hers.

His face; it was his father's face. He was pale, and scowled a lot, never trying to show his emotions. Fukou knew all too well what pain emotions brought. So he scowled, looking sour and kept people away from him either with his glare or with his harsh words. At the tender age of six, Fukou was already unrelenting with words, but they were the only thing he was good at.

He closed the window behind him and petted his dog's head. "Come on," he told the husky. The dog came up to his shoulder, if one included the ears. Hearing the rumble of a car, he threw himself down on the low roof of the side porch. A sedan pulled up in the driveway next to his.

Fukou didn't waste time. "Wolfsbane," he told the dog. "Jump!" She leapt to the ground, and Fukou followed her. From there, he ran as fast as he could to the shrine, going up the back way he had discovered when he was four. It involved running through the backyard of a few houses, but that wasn't a problem at all. Wolfsbane leapt at his feet, tongue lolling out of her mouth and her tail wagging, but she didn't bark. Barking would alert Fukou's father that he wasn't in his room studying like he was supposed to be. Neither of them wanted that, as it meant Fukou would get in trouble and Wolfsbane wouldn't be able to play.

When they got to the shrine, however, Wolfsbane grabbed a stick and dropped it at Fuu's feet. Picking it up made Wolfsbane bark, eager to have Fukou throw it. The husky danced, jumping about and barking, tail wagging and tongue lolling.

Fukou was already feeling better.

* * *

Meanwhile, Kei was skipping about, leaping cracks in the sidewalk as she headed back in the direction of the shrine. Maybe the owner of the shrine had children! Maybe they were her age and they would be friends with her! She wondered what the shrine was dedicated too, and if she could make a little offering or a prayer to the local spirits. She'd like to wish for good luck in beginning her school next week. Kei was never really quite sure what to do in school. She was only five, but she had learned that people who were different were outcasts. Kei couldn't figure out what being "normal" meant, so she was just herself.

Apparently that wasn't normal.

She gasped when she saw the long stairs leading up to the shrine. Her mouth formed into a little 'o', and she began climbing up the steps, now and then needing to use her hands to help her climb the taller parts of the uneven stairs. When she reached the top, she looked around. There was a well-house on one side, and a real house on the other. She could smell cooking ramen coming from the house, but really, she was interested in the building straight ahead of her, where she could go and pray.

As she neared the shrine, she heard barking. Kei emerged from the structure, the barking getting louder, and she found herself staring up at the biggest tree she ever had before. It was huge! 'Even Daddy couldn't put his arms around that and touch his fingers together!' Kei thought to herself with some awe. How old was the tree to have grown so big?

'Somehow…' Kei looked around. There was no one there. She knew she shouldn't cross the decorative barrier, but… she wanted to touch the tree. Her hand itched to touch the tree. It seemed almost familiar, but Kei knew that she had never seen it before. It was probably just her imagination. Or, maybe it was another one of those feelings that she couldn't understand until she was older.

She slipped under the ropes, and approached the tree. Slowly, still fearing she would get caught, she placed her hand against the rough bark. The tree felt warm under her skin, and she stepped closer to it. With that warmth… with that warmth, she could almost imagine there really was a spirit in it… maybe it was the god of trees, which explained how a single tree could be so big! Yes, a god was wrapped inside that tree, sleeping peacefully… She pressed her cheek against it, hugging the tree as tightly as she could.

_I want…_ she thought tightly, trying to figure out exactly what she wanted so she could whisper it to the sleeping god, _I want… I want to know why it feels like there's something I'm missing, something I'm forgetting! It's like I'm supposed to be doing something, but I don't know what! And… and please, sir, if you can, help me be strong!_

The barking stopped. A low growl filled the air. It was coming from behind her. Kei spun around, her back to the tree. A wolf stood in front of her, its upper lip curling to reveal long fangs glistening with saliva. Its grey fur bristled in anger, and it slowly inched forward, snarling all the while.

Looking for a place to run to, Kei found herself trapped. There was no where to run to before the wolf would lunge at her. Kei drew her arms to her chest, sinking down on the ground, trying to appear as non-threatening as she could. "I'm sorry," she whimpered, "I didn't realize that someone was protecting the tree! I won't do it again!"

The wolf lunged for her and she shut her eyes tightly, hoping that it would miss.

"Wolfsbane! Bad dog!" A large hand seemed to materialize out of nowhere, grabbing the husky by her collar and pulling her away from the girl huddled into a ball out of fear. The man merely glared at the dog. The husky stopped growling, sitting down and whining for a treat. The man lowered his hand for the dog, who licked it, the tail thumping a little out of happiness.

"You can open your eyes," the man said, a bit roughly, to the scared girl.

When she opened them, Kei felt her heart skip a beat. She had been saved by the prettiest man she had ever seen. His face was refined, his features sharp but expressive. His hair was early silver, pulled into a tight braid and falling over his broad shoulder. His bangs, those wild bangs, nothing could tame them. They framed his eyes and face, making his eyelashes stand out. And his eyes! They were pure gold. He smiled at her, and his teeth seemed a bit sharp, his nails on the hand he reached to her with seemed a bit too long. Comparing him to the wolf—no, she realized, the husky—sitting next to him, there barely seemed to be any difference.

But he was gorgeous!

She took in his clothes, feeling her cheeks blush and her mouth freeze up. He wore the white shirt and the red pants many people wore on shrines. He wore a hat and laying beside him was a broom. 'He must have been outside cleaning… but then, why didn't I see him; why didn't he stop me from touching the sacred tree?' She gulped, and she took his hand without fear, standing up as he knelt down before her, inspecting her for injuries. 'Maybe he came right out of the tree. Maybe he's the spirit of the tree. Yes, yes, that's exactly what he is. He's a spirit, here to keep me safe from the other spirit that was mad I touched the tree.'

"Are you okay?" Kei still couldn't make herself answer. She merely nodded. The man smiled a little, brushing the dog beside him. "Don't worry about Wolfsbane. He just thought that you were trying to hurt his friend."

"What harm could I do?" Kei giggled, slowly forgetting that she was talking to a god. "Look at me! I'm little! I couldn't even hurt a fly!"

The man's smile grew. "I'm Yasha. What's your name?" He once again offered her his hand, this time in greeting.

"Konseki Kei." She shook his hand, bowing her head. Looking at him, he blushed a little at the way her eyes roamed over her face, searching for something. "Yasha… that means… it means ogre, right?"

"Actually, it means 'demon'," Inuyasha corrected with a faltering smile. He stopped stroking the dog to pick her up and hold her against his chest. Kei felt warmth surround her, a gentle peace that came from being with someone she knew would protect her. "I haven't seen you around here before. Did you get lost or something?"

Kei smiled up at him brightly. She felt… special, knowing that the tree-spirit knew she had just arrived. "I just moved here today! I live a couple of houses down, and I love shrines!"

"Do you really? Well, you'll have to meet my wife. She's the one who really takes care of the shrine, as she is the Priestess." Kei looked down at the large hands holding her and she saw the gold wedding band on his ring finger. So, the man wasn't a tree-spirit at all. He was just a normal person… a very pretty normal person. His wife must be very lucky to have such a nice husband!

Glancing at the puppy, who looked sad now that she wasn't getting all of the golden eyed man's attention. "Is he your puppy?"

The man was silent. He looked up at the leafy canopy, and was quiet a moment. "She could have been hurt, you know."

"Aw," said a voice from inside the tree. Kei wondered if a real spirit was going to show up. "Wolfsbane is smart. He wouldn't have really hurt her, just scared her away. That is, if she would have had the sense to move away from me. He just wants to protect me, Yasha."

A boy leapt down from the tree. Kei was surprised that he was able to land on his feet from such a great height, or that he was brave enough to jump from it. For a brief moment she felt a great deal of respect for the young child. Then he looked up, glaring at her for no reason whatsoever, and she had to move closer to Yasha to try and hide from the coldness the boy was giving off!

_He_ should have been the one with the name of 'demon'! His green eyes were cold, as hard and as impersonal as jade, and he stood with such aloof grace that even she could tell he was a good fighter. No one who couldn't fight would dare stand as if they were eager for a scrap, eager to take on the whole world and everyone it contained. The dog trotted over to him, sitting down and letting the boy scratch his ears. Seeing Kei's eyes on him, he smiled, and it was a cruel, calculating smile.

"Girls are stupid."

Kei felt her face go red in anger.

Yasha set her down. "My wife isn't here right now, nor is my daughter. Please, you're welcome to our shrine at any time, Kei. Hopefully next time we'll have some sweets for you; my daughter loves cooking. Even if she _does_ burn her food." He then glared back down at the boy, lightning nearly flashing between the two. "And as for you, you tell your dog not to scare Kei anymore, understood? If you don't, I will!"

Fukou nodded, holding his dog a bit closer. The last time Yasha had spoken to the husky, something seemed to have passed between them and ever since then Wolfsbane treated Yasha like a second master. It made Fukou a bit angry, really. Yasha hadn't been the one that had fought to keep the dog; Yasha hadn't been the one who had found the dog half-starved on a walk one day; Yasha hadn't been the one to bathe his dog to keep away the fleas, to feed him and play with him every day… yet if Fukou didn't know any better, he almost said that Wolfsbane treated Yasha like he was another dog, an alpha male, while Fukou was at times a friend, at times a puppy who didn't know any better.

He swallowed hard, trying to keep from voicing his suspicions about the shrine. Everyone knew there was something going on at the shrine, but with Kagome's sweet nature, Yasha's usually silent strength and the way he opened up around children, and Kaede's energy, no one said anything about it. They just kept on blissfully ignoring that Yasha rarely left the shrine, that Kagome disappeared so often….

"Fine," he said grumpily.

Looking down at Kei, he ruffled her hair, not seeming to care that most people called her names because of how oily it looked. He grinned at her. "Get on home, kid. Don't make your parents worry about you." Kei nodded and skipped of home, a brilliant smile on her face.

Fukou watched her go, shaking his head. 'Ditz.' He glared up at Inuyasha. "Why did you tell her she could come whenever she wants to? Now she's probably going to find me here and she's going to end up wanting me to play dolls with her, and she won't leave me a lone. Shit, then she's going to make friends and they'll all be over here giggling… I won't have any time to think."

"Don't swear," was the only thing Inuyasha said in response. "Kagome wouldn't like to hear you use such language at your age. When you're as old as I am, then you can swear as much as you like."

* * *

Kei pushed her covers off her bed and leaned on the windowsill beside her bed. It was a beautiful sunset, the large orange orb illuminating the tips of the god-tree in the shrine. Kei sighed. She still had a lot of unpacking to do, but oh, how she wanted to go and see the shrine again!

Yasha…

She wanted to see him too again. She had never met anyone like him before. Nor had she ever seen anyone like him before! Surely he must be at least part god to have such fine silver hair and such glimmering eyes. Kei felt herself sigh and curl up on her bed again, holding her teddy bear to her.

Yasha…

Sleep started to claim her, but not before she remembered that masculine voice from her dreams, the one that promised to save her, and love her. 'Yasha,' she thought with a yawn. 'Yasha saved me…'

* * *

The next day, Kei and her mother were singing to the radio as they unpacked the kitchen dishes. Her father had already left for work, having spent the morning painting the living room, and Kei had told her mother all about the pretty shrine she had seen. The house reeked of paint fumes, and they had opened up all the windows to get the smell out.

Outside, Fukou heard the sounds of music and laughter and felt filled with jealousy. He rapped on the door harshly, wanting to be anywhere but standing in front of Kei's door. He wanted to be doing anything but greeting Kei to the neighborhood with his mother, and he didn't like the clothes she had told him to wear.

Fukou wasn't entirely sure of what he thought of Kei, but he knew he didn't like her. She was stupid. And she was short and… and she was a girl! It wasn't really that Fukou did or didn't like girls; he was at that age when girls were wimps. They cried a lot, and screamed when they were scared…

Girls were stupid.

Sora heard the knocking at the door and greeted them politely. Fukou's mother, Amy, handed Sora a freshly baked pie. Fukou bitterly wondered when the last time had been that his mother had baked a pie for him. Amy smiled at Sora. "Welcome! My name is Amy, this is my son, Fuu." She ruffled his hair affectionately, and Wolfsbane barked, feeling left out. Amy laughed a little. "That would be Wolfsbane. Don't mind her; she's just a big puppy. We just wanted to welcome you to the neighborhood! Please, if you need anything, feel free to ask."

Fukou watched Sora's face carefully. He could almost pinpoint the moment when she wondered how such a sweet-face beauty could have had such a sour looking child. Amy's bright green eyes weren't jaded, her orange hair was perfectly brushed, and with her freckles and her blush she looked like the perfect picture of healthiness. He, on the other hand, looked as uncomfortable as a boy usually did when he had been stuffed inside of dress pants and a button up shirt in his least favorite color.

His mind drifted off, and the next thing he knew, he was being ushered inside the house as his mother accepted the offer of a cup of tea. Then he realized that Sora was calling for Kei. Fukou scowled. He was going to have to act civil to the little tart, wasn't he?

Kei emerged from the kitchen, holding a stack of spoons she had been putting away. Seeing she had guests, Kei bowed her head politely. "Please to meet you Aisowotsukasu-san. Please to meet you Wolfsbane." She lifted her head and stared back at the scowling boy, saying nothing. At her mother's insistence, she said something to him. "Aiso-sempai."

Wondering what was wrong with her daughter, she smiled at the two children and the large husky. She was rather worried when she saw that the dog was the same size as Kei. "Why don't you three go into the backyard and get to know each other better? We'll make up some tea and get some cookies and juice ready and we'll call you in when you can eat." If something was wrong, Sora would be able to hear and see everything though the large open kitchen windows, so Kei would be perfectly safe.

Knowing that her mother wasn't actually _suggesting_ that they play together as much as she was _telling_ them to play together, Kei put the spoons down on the table. She looked at Fukou coldly. "I'll show you to the backyard."

* * *

Fukou leaned against the trees in the backyard as he watched Kei try and avoid Wolfsbane, who kept walking up to her and wagging his tail, trying to sniff her and get some attention. Kei was obviously distressed by Wolfsbane's proximity, judging by the way she avoided her gold eyes and balled her hands closed.

"She won't hurt you," he said crossly, his voice full of disdain. He tried to avoid the mental thought that someone his age shouldn't be so filled with hatred.

"Somehow," Kei said, slightly sullen herself, "I don't believe you." She turned away when the dog again tried to get close to her. She didn't _want_ to be out in the field with Fuu; she didn't want to _see_ Fuu, she didn't want anything to do with him! Kei found him vulgar and knew that he would get her into trouble. Kei let out a scared sound. "Call her off, will you?"

Fukou waited a second, and then he called his dog over. Wolfsbane trotted and laid down beside Fukou, her long nose on the little boy's pants so that she could be petted. Fukou stroked his dog, his eyes slightly lowered as he watched Kei look around, trying to find something to amuse herself or distract herself from his presence. Fukou knew when he wasn't wanted.

Snorting in disgust for her obvious emotions, Fukou's upper lip lifted into the six year old version of a sneer. "You're such a wuss, Kei."

Suddenly, unexpectedly, anger flared in her blue eyes and she glared at him. Fukou felt some new part of him slide out of the laziness that seemed to fill his body at the sight of her reddening cheeks. So Kei did have a bit of fight within her! "Don't call me that. How dare you speak to me with such formality?"

"What would you prefer I called you? Kei-chan? Or even… Kei-kun, as you look so much like a guy!"

"You can call me Konseki-san! And how dare you insult my name like that when _you're_ the boy who is named after a girl!"

This time it was in Fukou's eyes that anger suddenly flashed. His eyes snapped up to her, deadly green points that made Kei wish she was taller, bigger. Maybe then she might have been more prepared for it. No one ever, _ever_ made fun of his name. He slid out from under Wolfsbane and stood up, his whole body tensing in a fight or flight preparation that was instinct even for someone as young as he was. "Take that back, Kei!"

"Don't call me that!" Wolfsbane stood up, standing near Fukou to keep him safe, sensing the threat in their voices. Kei paled about two shades, even her lips looking pale, but whenever she looked at Fukou, the anger came crashing back down around her.

And that was it. Fukou wouldn't treat her with respect, because he thought she was the stupidest, weakest person he had ever met, and Kei wouldn't take back the comment about his name being that of a girls', because she felt it was essential not to win her first fight against this icy boy. If she did lose her first fight with him, then she would be more willing to give up in their next fight. Because there would be another fight. Kei knew it. Fuu was a dick, and would continue to make her life a living hell. If it wasn't for the shrine next door and Yasha, she would have nothing to look forward to…

They glared at each other, and then finally, Fukou licked his lips, like a wolf going into the kill, giving in with a bastardized sense of defeat. "Konseki-san it is, then, _Kei_. I mean, I suppose that I could call you by your first name, it being pretty and all… but who would ever even believe that I was talking to or about you when they saw how ugly you are underneath all that grease?" He closed his eyes superiorly, blind to the anger that made her face a beacon and the glint in her eyes that screamed for vengeance. "There's no way that someone as ugly as you should have such a pretty name…"

SLAP!  
She had darted forward with such speed that not even Wolfsbane was quick enough to put herself between the feuding children. His face snapped to the side, his cheek turning as red as her face. He opened his eyes, just able to see the tears leak from her eyes in childish, fat drops. She sniffled loudly, her voice filled with vehemence.

"I hate you."

Fukou touched his cheek, wincing at the slightest pressure he put on it, watching her as she ran back to the house. Wolfsbane whined beside him. He looked down at the husky, thinking about Kei and having a little bit more respect for her than he had a moment ago. For such a little thing, she packed a punch when she got riled up. He'd have to get her pissed off again sometime, and now he knew just how to do it.

"You know," he told the one close friend he had, "if she wasn't such a wimp, I bet that she'd be fun."

* * *

To be continued... 


	2. Cruel to be Kind

Comrade in Arms

AN: I'm so glad to see that this has gotten such a great start! I was actually really apprehensive about starting this story because I didn't know how people would like it, but thus far, your responses have been great, so it's full steam ahead for writing my newest baby now!

As a side note to Inuyasha and Kagome, this story is still going on while Sango and Miroku are alive in the Sengoku Jidai. Meaning that at this time, Kagome and Inuyasha will disappear on weekends to go to Feudal Era, and Kissaki is a little kid again helping Mommy make things in the kitchen... the two story lines, you see, will eventually merge. So keep that in mind!

A few more general notes:

-some of the things I've done was meant to create a parallel, echoing back to the relationship they had before. Fukou hates his name, and so he calls himself Fuu, which, as far as I know via online translator, means wind. Wind equals arir, air equals the kazaana, and because everyone else calls him "Fuu" rather than "Fukou" guess what happens when Kei calls him that:grin:

Also, while they don't have active memories of their past lives, they do have feelings and nightmares. Things that scared them deeply, or that they hold dear were carried with them. More will become apparent as they story goes on, but with the last chapter:

-Sango can remember talking with Miroku... she doesn't remember the circumstances, his name, etc, just that she has a promise that someone will come back to her.

-Sango has nightmares regarding Kohaku. When I wrote that, I was thinking of a particular scene from the second movie. For those of you who have seen it, I think you know what scene I mean. Let's face it. Seeing THAT happen to Kohaku will traumatize anybody!

Fireblade: Maybe Inuyasha and Kagome will figure it out... but they aren't in the story much. After all, it's about Kei and Fuu.

Demon Exterminator Barbie: Yup. Fuu is a little brat and I love him. And I should clarify know, that Sango/Kei doesn't want any kind of physical love, she... wants the half of her soul back, the part of her that she gave to Miroku long ago, she wants acceptance and companionship... that's the kind of love she wants. The cute one. :nods:

Lily Thorne: I love the relationship they have... it's so juvenille. Wait until the best frineds come in!

Serena: I don't usually write stuff about little kids at times... so this is me stretching my legs. And regarding Wolfsbane-you caught what I didn't. In the original draft, Wolfsbane was a guy. After a few chapters, I went back and made Wolfsbane a girl. I wanted her to kind of be like Kirara was for Sango in the hard times for her life, to kind of be a protective mother watching over her cubs. So I switched her gender.

Critique2: I say why can't kids have emotions like that! They blow it out of proportions the same way teenagers do... they just do it in a cute manner:grin:

Fantastical Queen: You know, you're right. Fuu does remind me of green apples!

B4By: Kids can be mean. Actually, kids can be very mean, even at such a young age. But, maybe Kei can change him before he becomes a bad green apple.

Blood Red Emerald: Of course she can recognize them!

Starzki: I'm afraid I don't know. I'm bad at Japanese pronunciation. I'm better at Latin and English. Seeing as how I speak those languages. (Yes, I speak Latin... though I'm better at translating it.) As for the name, his father was very vindictive, plus, as you'll see later, it once again creates the infamous name scenario. Kei doesn't call him by his name. So when she does... it's a big deal.

Ninalee-chan: There will be many familiar things... or at least hints of it!

Virgo02: no, I didn't know that. Like I said, I used an online translator and it told me something different. But... ah... :looks for an escape hatch: Maybe it's like the name Mary in English? It means bitter-bitter of course being an innuendo for a bitter virgin-but people still name their kids Mary!

Chadrific: They're little kids. They grow into their good looks… and I protest! Fukou… well, actually, Fukou is supposed to look almost exactly the same, but with green eyes—and eventually glasses. He has Miroku's hair. Because I love that hair. :nods: And I'm glad that it made you feel better.

Thank you to everyone else who reviewed! Enjoy!

"Well I do my best to understand dear  
But you still mystify, and I wanna know why  
I pick myself up off the ground  
To have you knock me back down  
Again and again

And when I ask you to explain  
You say you gotta be  
Cruel to be kind, in the right measure  
Cruel to be kind, it's a very good sign  
Cruel to be kind, means that I love you"

-Cruel to be kind, by Letters to Cleo

Childhood: Chapter Two: Cruel to be Kind

Despite living next door to each other, Kei and Fukou didn't see each other until the first day of school. That is to say, they were not aware of seeing each other. Kei remembered looking out her window and seeing him as he walked his monstrous dog, but she drew the curtain and ran to the back of the house before he could see her. Kei went to the shrine each day to pay her respects, her parents allowing this because it was so close, in broad daylight, and they were glad that their daughter was getting exercise and being so respectful to the spirits. When she went, Fukou was often around as well, but he was hidden in the branches of the Goshinboku and only wondered how long she was going to be around.

'But at least she had been quiet and not all blubbery or giggling,' he would always admit to himself after these visits.

However, on the day before their first day of grade one, Kei received some tragic news. She had just finished brushing her teeth and was preparing to go to bed. In the middle of crawling into the covers, her mother passed her open door. Sora stuck her head into the room, smiling sweetly. Seeing her daughter didn't mind her presence, Sora entered and sat down nest to Kei on the bed, stroking her daughter's hair and handing Kei her teddy bear. "Excited about school tomorrow, Kei-chan?"

Kei smiled, but it faltered. She played with her teddy bear, her bright blue eyes looking down at the bed covers. "Actually," she admitted to her mother in a small voice, "I'm a little bit nervous. But I have everything ready, so I won't be late or anything. But… what happens if I'm too short to reach the drinking fountains? Or… or…"

She couldn't voice her fears, and she clutched her teddy bear closer. 'I am nervous; excited but nervous. What happens if I don't make any friends? What if it's the same as in Okinawa, where all I do is get teased?'

She didn't know if her mother understood her unspoken fears or not, but either way, Sora smiled and kissed Kei's forehead tucking her daughter in. "You'll be just fine. The school isn't very far from here. Just a five minute walk. You and Fuu will be just fine walking it on your own. Of course, Wolfsbane will be there to keep you two safe. The dog follows that boy everywhere." Too busy chuckling about how the husky treated Fuu like her child, Sora missed the look of horror on Kei's face.

She had to walk to school with _him_? And the dog?

Kei hadn't told her mother anything about what had passed, and how Kei said that she hated Fuu, or that she was scared of the dog. Somehow, she thought that by doing so she would get Fuu into trouble, and she didn't really want to get Fuu into trouble. She just had this odd urge to pick a fight with him.

* * *

"Oy! Konseki-san! Don't you dare make me late for my first day of school!" Fuu tapped his foot on the ground, staring at the house. Her window was on the opposite side of the house from his, as he had discovered by watching for her, and he stood under it, yelling. When she didn't answer him, he picked a few small pebbles and threw them at her window. "Oy! Konseki-san!"

The front door opened. He heard voices and ran around to the front of the house in time to see Kei's parents kiss her cheeks and tell her to have a good day at school and remember her manners and most importantly, they stressed, to have fun. It was with some bitterness that Fukou scooped up his books laying in the grass. _His_ parents had never told him that. His father always cut short his mother's goodbyes and told his son to learn something.

Fukou supposed that it was the closest his father could come to being sweet and sincere.

So, eventually, he had just started leaving early, going and hanging out with his so-called friends before school, and now he had play baby-sitter to the little tart. After the front door shut, he walked up to her, swinging his books, and his nose curled in disgust.

She looked… so disgustingly cute. Her hair was up in pigtails, and the blue uniform skirt and white shirt looked good against her red cheeks and with her blue eyes. Though the knee-high socks looked more like pantyhose on her. She _was_ short, wasn't she? He, on the other hand, felt stupid. The blue shorts did nothing for his eyes, and the white dress shirt did nothing for his complexion. Now… had the uniform been _black_… Fukou actually quite enjoyed looking good, looking presentable, enjoyed taking time to make his appearance look perfect. It was a shame that he couldn't get his hair under control.

When Kei saw him and Wolfsbane, she went a little bit pale herself, and she looked at the watch on her wrist, pouting a little. She resettled her knapsack on her back. "Aren't we leaving a little bit too early? School doesn't start for half an hour!"

"Come on," he told her, waking away. He began walking down the street. This was going to be one long walk. Wolfsbane's claws tapped the pavement with each step, and he could hear Kei following him, surprisingly quiet. Once he had to look to see what she was doing. He found her simply looking around at the sky, and he felt stupid when she caught him staring at her.

Kei had been trying to figure out what Fuu had been missing. When she finally got it, she skipped a bit forward, keeping Fuu between herself and the husky. "Fuu-sama…" His green eyes widened in surprise when he heard her new name for him. She peered up at him curiously, and Fukou wondered how anybody could be so disgustingly cute. Where was that spitfire he had encountered? Maybe he should start picking a fight with her… "Fuu-sama, where is your lunch?"

His books were tied in his belt, and he kept them swung over his shoulder, looking deceptively careless. "Hm?" He frowned, his black hair falling into his eyes, though he resettled when he stopped looking over his shoulder at Kei. "I don't have a lunch."

Softening her voice a little, trying to be prying. "But then… what are you going to eat?"

"Nothing, I guess," he shrugged, trying to keep sounding careless.

They walked a little further in silence. Soon, Kei could see the school ahead of them. She reached out, shy, drawing her hand back once or twice before she finally tugged lightly on Fukou's sleeve. She stopped walking, and he turned to look at her. Her eyes landed somewhere under his neck, enough to make it look like she was trying to look at his eyes. Her cheeks were pink, her eyes filled with nervousness. "Fuu-sama," she said softly, "if you want… I have enough food that we could share at lunch. I don't want you going hungry."

Fukou stared at her a second. He was in shock. She was offering to share a lunch with him?

Good god, this was beautiful! Fukou leaned down to her level, straight faced, perfectly cruel and cold. His voice was steel tipped with a deadly point, brutal to even such a young girl as Kei. "Now why," he asked, "would I want to share a lunch with an ugly girl like you, Kei?"

Her eyes widened in shock. She had actually allowed herself to feel a sliver of _sympathy_ for the jerk, and he was rude to her! This time there were no tears. Her face went red, and she balled her hands, ready to strike out at him. Her voice was filled with pent up rage. "I told you not to call me that."

Fukou started to smile a little bit. "I. Don't. Care."

Before she could lash out at him, he spun on his heels and walked into the school yard, leaving Wolfsbane and Kei standing there, the husky feeling abandoned without a goodbye, and Kei simply being pissed. Wolfsbane whined and looked at Kei, who didn't seem to notice that it was just her and the husky in the midst of her rage. When she did, she stood still and Wolfsbane trotted forward, licking Kei's cheek goodbye before starting home.

The first thing Kei did when walked into the courtyard was ignore Fuu talking to his friends, walk right into the library, and grab a thesaurus. She needed to find some more words that meant 'stupid jerk'.

* * *

Spotting his friends, Fukou waved to them. They came running, shouting his name and jumping on him unexpectedly. Fukou let out a yelp of surprise and ducked and covered to avoid the three boys attacking him. Their weight pushed him to the ground, sounds of laughter coming from the huge pile of dust.

"Fuu! Where have you been all summer? You were supposed to keep in touch, dumbass!"

"What's with the chick I saw you walking to school with? What'd you do? Go find yourself a girl and forget all about us?"

"Die!"

The last cry came from Jou, the closest person Fuu had to a real enemy. The two had always been getting into scraps in kindergarten, and they had usually been over the dumbest things: the best flavor of pudding, finger painting versus painting with a paint brush, the prettiest looking letter in the alphabet… they had been driving the teacher insane as she wondered how children that were five years old (though Fuu had turned six) came up with such dumb and yet, not altogether unintelligent arguments. (For safety's sake, they had been split up into two different classes this year; the school didn't want to have to pay another teacher's shrink bills.)

He flew into the fight with them, biting down on wandering fingers and pushing bodies away from him, kicking when they came near. Jou lasted the longest, but he too was eventually thrown off of Fukou. He stood panting, his uniform dirty, grinning wildly, watching his friends get up. He wiped a bit of blood from the corner of his mouth. "Anyone want to try again?"

Neji sat up, rubbing a bruised cheek. He didn't know who had bruised it, but when he did… No one hurt his face! He, of course, had been the one asking about Kei. Though only five and a half, Neji was already interested in the other sex. "It's not fair... how did you get to be such a good fighter?"

"Well," Fuu said properly, straitening, "I _am_ the eldest here!"

"Only by six months!" Neji protested. He picked himself up, dusting off his uniform and smiling as some girls went passing by. The smile quickly vanished when they screamed something about boys having cooties. He turned back to Fuu. "But really, who's the chick you were with?"

He shrugged, straightening his shirt. "Just my next door neighbor. She's a wuss. And she's pretty damn stupid too. She's probably a klutz too, which is why I get the distinction of walking her to and from school everyday. The least her parents could do is pay me for walking their dog."

Jou whistled, still sitting in the dirt. He looked up at Fukou uncertainly. "Isn't that a little harsh, Fuu? I mean… she was actually kind of cute. I bet you ten yen that she grows up to be a babe." Fuu shook his hand, and Jou stood up. "Well, I think I'm going to go meet her."

Neji jumped on his back, smashing the smallest boy of their little group back down on the ground. "Hey! How come you get to go talk to the girl first? You don't like girls!"

Jumping in, Fukou smacked Neji upside the head while Shin laughed at the three of them tussling. "You idiot! _I'm_ the first one who got to talk to her, and what interest would you have? I told you, she's a wuss, Neji! I mean… god, she was scared of Wolfsbane! Besides," he added snidely, leaning on Neji and pulling his ear, "we all know that you won't have a use for her until you can actually have an erection, ne, Neji?"

Fuu let them both up, thinking to himself, fixing his dark hair. His face turned considerate, so odd for him, who either showed nothing or was coldly smug, that his friends were a little concerned about what he was thinking. 'She did seem a lot stronger though, when I was teasing her… I wonder how much teasing she could take… I wonder how strong she would be if I pushed her…'

"Anyone home in there?" Shin asked, poking Fukou. The other boy's reaction was swift. He grabbed Shin's arm and dragged him down, pinning him single handedly down on the ground. Shin waited patiently for Fuu to regain himself, and let him up. Shin wasn't in any pain, Fukou never actually hurt them, and any bruises or blood that was drawn was really the result of accidents, never on purpose.

"Gomenesai," Fukou said, letting Shin up and dusting him off a little bit. He granted his smile one of rare, genuine smiles, as well as the politeness he reserved only for his comrades. "I lost myself for a moment. I was thinking… Eh? Where did Jou go?"

Shin rolled his eyes. "That's what I was trying to tell you. Jou went to go and talk to the girl." He fixed his shirt, sighing at the grass stains on his shoulder. "Aw, crap, mom's going to kill me. Oh well. So… how was your summer?"

"I bet you that he hung out at the shrine all summer," Neji laughed shortly. He shook his head disapprovingly. "What are you, Fuu? A monk?"

Fukou grinned again, cracking his knuckles. "Actually, Neji, it's amazing what you can learn when you're at the shrine all summer, listening to peers you actually respect, like Higurashi-sama and Yasha-sama. Would you like to know what I have learned this summer?"

* * *

Kei picked an empty seat and slammed the dictionary open. She began scrolling through it. "Bakka… Bakka… Bakka…."

"It's not nice to call yourself names," drawled a voice from the doorway. She was still a moment, unresponsive, and he took this as a good sign, entering. He shut the door behind him and slid into the seat next to him, still smiling. Freckles danced over the boy's nose and cheeks, and his hair was brilliant red, his eyes the same bright blue as hers. "My name is Jou. I'm a friend of Fuu's."

"That bastard actually has friends?"

The words were out of her mouth before she knew what she was saying. She regretted them immediately, and she regretted them even more when Jou shook his finger at her, clucking his tongue. "Now, now, that's not nice at all, especially coming from a young lady such as yourself. I see that you've only seen the rough side of Fuu. Really, he has a nice side as well, but you see… Fuu really hates it when girls cry. He won't tell us why, but I figure, that since you're going to be living next to him and dealing with him a lot, that you should know."

Her face was still red, and she didn't lift her eyes from the book. Jou thought she was still ashamed until he saw that she was nearly ripping pages out of the thesaurus as she tried to turn them. "I don't want anything to do with him!" she suddenly screeched.

Jou then wondered how Fukou had ever called Kei ugly, or dumb. "I never said that, I just hoped that by giving you a hint about his personality, that maybe it might be easier for you two as you try to, you know, live next to each other, that's all."

She was silent. He tilted his head to the side, leaning in closer, and he smiled broadly. "So what's your name, anyway?"

Quietly, came the answer. "Kei. Konseki Kei." Her eyes slowly slid up to find him making a funny face, and a smile tried to tug at her lips. The color rose to her cheeks, and Jou pointed a finger at her, exclaiming that he knew he could make her laugh. She stared at him a moment. "You know, you look a lot like a kitsune."

He turned around to look at his own butt. "I do?" His attempt made Kei laugh again. He looked at her closely, and saw the same twinkle deep in her eyes that he saw in his own when he looked in the mirror. "Ah. I see. You're a dreamer, like me. In that case, Angel, you can call me Kitsune if you want, but I get to call you Angel, 'kay?"

"You… you want to call me an angel?" He nodded. She gave this some thought. "Have you… have you ever thought that you've seen a spirit? Felt it? Do you watch sakura blossoms in the air and wonder why the smell entrances you? Do you hope and beg and prey every night before you go to sleep that there's something more out there in the world, some larger piece that if you could figure out, everything would make sense?"

Her voice was strangely soft. Listening to it, Jou felt himself float away on it, feelings of peace wrap around him warmly. He nodded. "All the time. That's why I don't mind you call me Kitsune, Angel-chan. At least we can find what we want in each other." He offered her his hand, and she gladly took it.

* * *

"Bow."

The class bowed out of respect as the teacher stepped up to her desk. Before they could sit down again, there were some formalities, which Fukou completely ignored. His mind wandered absentmindedly, until he heard the name call begin. He braced himself for what he would hear, and it sounded even worse in the male teacher's gruff voice.

"Aisowotsukasu Fukou."

He sighed heavily, painfully aware of the whispers in the class. Without blinking, he held his chin high and summoned the ice that he kept in reserve in the deepest part of his psyche, just for such an occasion. "Here."

The roll call soon finished, but the glances his way didn't. He kept his eyes on the blackboard, wishing he could disappear.

'Who would name their child that?' the other children whispered. 'What did they do, open a dictionary up to word 'accident' or 'miserable' and pick the worst word possible?'

'Do you think he really was a mistake?'

'Maybe he's one of those test-tube babies. Maybe, if he was, he was never meant to live. Maybe he's a double mistake!'

'I hear he goes by the name Fuu. No wonder! It may be a little girlie sounding, but anything is better than the name 'accident'!'

His whole right arm ached as his muscles tightened. He wanted to punch something. Badly. How dare they talk about him like he wasn't there? How dare teachers just call out that name even though _they_, educated, literate people, _knew_ what it meant? Accident. He was named Accident. It reminded him always, that his parents hadn't wanted him. They had just wanted sex, wanted to satiate their physical natures and he, _he_ was the result.

He didn't move his eyes from the blackboard, and during the rest of the day, he kept his eyes there. Had he met the eyes of his fellow classmates, he knew what he would encounter, and it would drive him mad. It was the one thing worse than the remarks, than the shame of being reminded of what he was.

Pity.

* * *

Kei wondered if she should have really accepted Jou's offer to eat with him at lunch. They were all being let out for forty minutes, and it _was_ a very beautiful day, and since no one else would even talk to her, why shouldn't she have accepted Jou? 'Because Fuu will probably be there as well.'

Nor could some part of her help but wonder why no one else would talk to her. A few girls gave her looks of interest, the same looks of interest she had seen "new girls" get. Apparently these girls in particular were from the area and didn't remember seeing her in school last year. But then their eyes always slid to Jou, and they blushed wildly, hurrying by them as Jou tried to pretend that nothing was wrong.

She made a mental note to ask him about it, but not anytime soon. First, she wanted to grab hold of this opportunity and swing for all it was worth. She had never had a male friend before, and very few good friends before. Could Jou be that good friend she had longed to have?

Eager to find out, she had agreed to have lunch with him and his friends. Jou was teasing her, making her laugh, when Fukou materialized out of nowhere, and punched Jou very hard in the arm. So hard, in fact, that Jou winced and had to take a step or two back to keep from toppling over backwards. He growled, mad, protecting his shoulder and looked at his friend, knowing exactly what the punch was for. He saw some of the anger and fight flee from the eyes of his sometimes enemy and sometimes companion, but not enough when he turned on Kei.

Much to his surprise, she held her head high and stared back at Fukou. Fuu's eyes narrowed as Kei's unblinking gaze stared back at him, and when Kei matched his ferocity, he almost saw lightning start to spark between them. Finally, Fuu rationalized and turned to Jou. He didn't apologize for the punch, or thank Jou for being his punching bag. "Why'd you bring her?"

"Because I like her, so why shouldn't I become friends with someone I like?"

"But… she's a girl!"

Jou laughed shortly. "Is she really? Gee, Fuu, I guess I hadn't noticed." He grabbed Kei's hand and brushed by Fukou, walking right up to the tree where their other two friends lounged. "Guys, meet Fuu's next door neighbor."

Neji looked up first. He was tall and slender, about the same build as Fuu. His hair was light blonde, his eyes a warm brown, and they filled with awe when he saw that their new companion was wearing a skirt. He stood up, opening his mouth to try and wow Kei, but Jou's pushed him back down. He grinned at Neji. "I already warned her about you, Neji-kun, so don't try anything stupid, understand?"

The blonde boy only bristled at being called 'Neji-kun' in front of a girl.

Shin had gotten up, and offered her his hand, being no more than polite. "Your name is Konseki, ne? I'm Shin."

"Please to meet you."

Then it was the uncomfortable silence that accompanied such meetings, as they wondered what to say next, what to ask. Fukou rolled his eyes and stole Kei's lunch out of her knapsack. "Ikatadekimasu."

Kei whirled on him, jumping up and snatching her lunchbox back. Her blue eyes sparked back to life, her pigtails whirling at each movement she made. Kei clung to her lunchbox tighter. "Don't you dare try to steal my lunch, Fuu-sama! I already offered you some of my lunch. It's your fault that you didn't accept my offer!"

He once again allowed her the courtesy to speak on the same level as him, leaning down, though really it was meant to frighten her, to dive into her personal area and make her feel uncomfortable. "Why," he demanded, "would you want to share your lunch with me?"

Fukou had a reason for his actions. When she had walked out, there had been no pity in her eyes when she saw him. Fuu _was_ getting hungry. He'd forgotten how much energy being a young boy used up. But if she was offering him this lunch out of pity, then he'd walk away and eat somewhere else. Fuu wasn't a charity.

Instead, he watched her eyebrows knot together, her lips draw together in a look of confusion that was actually quite cute. She was trying to understand him. Wasn't the answer obvious as to why? She didn't take her eyes away from his, always trying to meet him square on. Forget being demure. "You don't have a lunch. My mother always makes a lot for me, so I have extra. And even if I didn't, even if all I had was a little bowl of rice, it's not right that someone should go without eating, so I would rather go a little hungry myself than to have you go without any food at all. People need food to live."

It was so simplistic. People need food to live, so he should have some of hers. Her logic was so cut and dry, without any twists or turns, without any 'ifs' or 'buts'. Despite how mean he had been to her, she saw him as a person, as a boy. His expression softened, just a little, reminding his friends of the expression he got when he was trying to protect someone smaller than him. Kei felt herself start to blush, making Fukou feel like he needed to say something.

When he didn't say anything, she just offered him half of her lunch.

It more than enough.


	3. Fighter

Comrades in Arms

AN: So I had a little bit of a freak out there when I lost this chapter… but I found it, and all is once again right in the world! Especially if I can get my history paper done tonight! I only have 1-2 pages to go! Woot!

A lot of people seem to think that Jou, Shin, and Neji—yes, there's a reason why Neji acts so much like an overly perverted, okay, more so than usual, Miroku—were reincarnations of people from the series. Well, surprise! They aren't. They're just normal, original characters. So why is Neji such a pervert and not Miroku's reincarnation? Simple. Eventually, Fuu will need someone who will get him to like girls… that's Neji's job! A lot of you are torn between saying the kids sound just right, and that they sound too adult… Eh. It's being written by a delusional chic in university trying to be a teacher. I suppose from my point of view, you're both correct. The grammar and language is probably too academic (blame my English and Latin teach for making me learn esoteric words) and I would argue that the content is great for a six year old kid… they know a lot more than we think they do!

SerenaClearWater: Wolfsbane is and will be a female.

Siren: I apologize. I edit it as well as I can.

Morelen: …Have you read my earlier stuff? I'm quirky! Lol That,. And they grow up. I like trying to tackle hard stuff, so this story goes from grade one all the way to the end of high school… although hey, maybe it might go further… maybe might do their whole freaking lives…. From six to sixty-six:grin: But we'll see.

Hououza: Thank you very much! I was a little worried at first… hearing that makes it a lot easier to push forward!

Blood Red: ….I wouldn't say that if I were you. I'm a stickler for twisty plots! Saying that just make me throw another wrench or two into the works.

Fireblade: I think I read that story too. And eh… maybe he will, and maybe he won't. Maybe I'll ruin everything by making him gay! (I kid, I kid!) As of chapter 15, the one currently in planning… no. But, we shall see….

Critique 2: Teen angst:looks around suspiciously: Who said anything at all about teen angst? Maybe they'll be a couple by the time they're teenagers!

Dancingsilverwolf: they are… if memory serves me right, six and seven about by this chapter. Kei's younger than Fuu. And yes, I do know that it means wind. I have a tendency to think really oddly, and so to me, wind and air are the same thing… even though they aren't, by the English dictionary and via translation, so I apologize. I mean, I went as Fuu Hououji twice to the CN Anime convention, so I _should_ know what it means, now shouldn't I?

Igs: You know me too well!

Chadrific: Yes, it will be long, unless my muse dies on me, and if you want to see the basis for Miroku's Fuu, go and look up Mikaila's art work at "Spiderwebs". The link is somewhere in DW… or it was. And just looking up "Kumo No Su" should bring it up.

Ninalee-chan: I like having them argue. It's fun to write. It's just sad that I get the basis for their arguments from my real life, either from guys whom I know have on a list of "People I need to stick something icky in the beds of" and from my boyfriend.

Angie: I have some great reviewers, that's why:grins: I'm also very glad that you like their names and characters! I was petrified that all I would have was complaints regarding their names or small personality changes… and I agree. Kei _is_ very similar to Sango. I suppose that I could have made her something completely different, rather than just a "normal girl" brought up to be very polite… but I enjoy the idea of having Miroku being a delinquent and getting Sango into trouble!

Thank you to all the other reviewers! As I have two pages of an essay to finish writing and _The Life of Timon of Athens_ to finish reading, I am editing this thing and heading off to homework town. Enjoy!

"Made me learn a little bit faster

Made my skin a little bit thicker

Makes me that much smarter

So thanks for making me a fighter."

-Fighter, Christina Aguilera

Chapter Three: Fighter

The first year of their friendship was a rocky one. They were often at odds, and Kei wondered what exactly she was to the strange group of boys with which she found herself making friends. Neji flirted with her, but she never responded, just blushed and walked away to go talk with Jou. She was still the closest to the red haired boy, and found that they liked many of the same things. Shin was always smiling and helpful, but rather quiet, and Fukou reminded her of the dark cat that watched over his pride.

When the boys interacted, it was always rough. They always punching each other, always putting each other in headlocks, and Kei was a little jealous. They all treated her like a little sister, except for the flirtatious Neji, but even little sisters were treated with a bit of physical attention. They were acting like because she was polite, she was extremely breakable, and that wasn't true,

Except for Fuu. He, at least, treated her like the strong person she was, when he wasn't being a complete dick. And, surprisingly, he often wasn't a complete dick. Somehow, Kei thought that maybe…

"Kei, you're spacing out again."

She whirled on Fukou, poking him in the chest. "Don't call me that!" she snapped. There was a pleased look in his eyes. He was happy that he was getting her riled up. Her finger was still poling into his chest. Her mouth opened slightly, her eyes darkening dangerously. Kei had been thinking. "You still don't completely accept me, do you Fuu-sama? You act civil towards me now and then because you have to, and you eat my food because you don't want me to worry about you. You put up with me like I'm a parent sent out to watch over you, you don't treat me like your friend at all!"

"That's because you're a girl," he said snidely, pushing her hand away and crossing his arms. "I… I only know how to be friends with males! Besides, you may be sweet on occasion, when you aren't being a bitch, but you're still weaker than a male could ever be."

"You… you guys are more like a gang than anything, aren't you?" He said nothing, and she closed her eyes, snorting and nodding. "I thought so. Which means that I need to fight to get in. So… fight me. That will appease you, right, because I'm proving that I can take whatever you can dish out. But in return, you have to treat me normally, like I _am_ one of the boys, instead of a bane on your existence."

Watching her sink down into a fighting stance, he stared at her like she was crazy. He was the best fighter in school; everyone knew that. He'd even beaten up some fourth graders when they were picking on a first year. Not that anyone knew the circumstances of that fight though, because that would ruin the image he had of being a bastard. Fukou liked the idea of people being scared of him, because it kept them away from him, it kept them away from being close enough to him to dig up old scars and to look at him with pity. His three male friends, at least, they accepted him for being him.

"You're crazy. I'd beat you to a bloody pulp."

She nodded. "I'm aware of that, but wasn't it you who said that it was only a _male_ who could take a beating like that and not shed a tear? Besides, you'll never know how good I am unless you try me, and I bet you that I could last longer than Shin in a fight against you."

"Anyone could last longer than Shin," he said, starting to smile cruelly. He looked around. The school yard was empty, but it was still a school yard. There were still teachers milling around inside the white building somewhere. "Do you seriously want to do it here?"

She gestured around them. "Well, if this battle is going to go by as quickly as you say it will, we won't be able to be caught, now will we, because it will be over before anyone can catch us. Secondly, isn't this the best area to fight in? Sand… dirt… trees… It's like an arena." He was still apprehensive. "What's the matter, Fuu-sama? Scared of having a girl beat you?"

His face snapped around to hers and he sank down without another word. His legs were spread, his feet digging into the ground, ready for her to attack, his arms raised. Her stance was very similar, but her feet were closer together, one leg bent and ready to kick.

It started with a kick.

He blocked the kick out of the way and twisted his back, his elbow going into her back as her momentum carried her by, and Kei fell into the dirt. He was about to laugh at her, tell her that a baby could have lasted that long, but she was suddenly up again, sliding into the dirt to kick out his legs from under him. Taken by surprise, Fukou fell to the ground. He sprang back up gracefully, with a sense of fun that he had never encountered in fighting before, and he let his body take control of him.

She punched and he blocked, he punched and she dodged, coming up under his attack with a knee to the side. He danced away quickly, his hand stopping her roundhouse. They circled each other, their faces expressionless, wary of each other now. Fukou was quick, as fast as Kei. Had he even though that she could be this good? It came as a surprise.

He punched again, and this time she grabbed his wrist, ducking her body and helping him over her back. His feet managed to catch him before he stumbled, and he grabbed her wrist back, pulling her closer and off balance, his straight hand coming down at her neck. Her blue eyes widened, and she reacted by kicking him in the knee cap, rolling away from his attack when his grip lessened. Dust was kicked up by her roll away, covering her slick hair and her uniform, and she looked feral when she lifted her head.

Fukou wasn't playing here.

Her whole body was shaking. She was trying very hard not to wonder why she knew that the attack he had used was called a _kuto_, and that the strike he had aimed at her was one meant to break someone's collar bone. She tried very hard not to wonder why she knew the stance she had called out was called _nekodachi_, or why she knew his was called horse stance, when there was no way she should know that.

Just as there was no logical way why her body had automatically reacted by flipping him over her shoulders when he had attacked her. She stood up, waiting for him to attack. As long as she didn't start to think, she reasoned, her body knew what to do. He attacked, and she leaned out of his reach, receiving a kick in her shin for not paying attention to what his feet were doing. Kei hissed in pain, getting mad.

She locked her feet with his, every step he took guiding her feet to hers. If he went to kick her, her leg would be following his every step of the way. He attacked her, punches and raps and hand-blades, and she stopped everyone. The impacts of the blocks and attacks meeting left bruises on both their arms, and their hands became blurs. They stepped in perfect unison, and slowly, their attacks became filled more with the desire to test each other, rather than to hurt each other out of frustration and pride. Soon, they were smiling, their blows softening enough to cause jarring impacts, but not to leave bruises, but their speed never dropped.

As Kei dodged an attack, breaking the body-to-body fight they had held for so long, she gulped down cold air, and stared at Fukou. He looked really good, his hair disheveled, his eyes bright and color coming to his face. He looked just about as tired as she felt. "Where," she panted, "did you learn to do that?"

"I don't know," he panted, "I just… know it. I've always known it. I remember watching Bruce Lee movies with my Dad when I was younger, and I remember hearing the names of the attacks in my mind, my arms legs… my arms and legs wanting to try it too, knowing I could so it. You?"

"I don't know either… Think you could use a weapon?" She almost regretted her question when he looked around and found a hockey stick that had been neglected to be returned back to the gym teacher laying in the ground. She looked around, spotting a branch from the tree they always ate their lunch under. That would do.

"Ready?" She nodded, and then she attacked, using the branch as a sword. He blocked with the hockey stick, and they were back to fighting again, a few kicks making contact, and a few punches making contact from Kei's free hand. Their clothes were torn and dirty, their breaths ragged in the cooling afternoon air, their hair matted with dirt and coming out of their hairstyles. Their bodies ached with bruises, but neither of them felt it, and Kei suddenly lunged.

Fukou knocked the stick away with the hockey stick. She spun to do a roundhouse, and as her back was—foolishly, she realized afterwards—turned to his, he dropped the hockey stick against her neck, pinning her against his older and larger body. Her arms automatically came up beside her head, pressing against the hockey stick to give her a bit of breathing room. She kept trying to press it further away, hoping she could duck her chin to her neck to protect herself from getting choked out. When she came to the conclusion that his leverage and muscle were superior in this position, she reached her hands further back and grabbed the collar of his shirt.

Bending herself over, she opened her mouth and let out as large a _kiai_ as she could. Fukou felt himself go flying over her again, and the wind was knocked out of him when he landed. She twisted his weapon from his grip, and she flung it away.

He rolled over, about to lunge at her again, planning on tackling her to the ground where his weight would be put to better use. Instead, a sharp female voice called out his name, and he stopped. His teacher walked towards him, the principal right behind her. Fukou barely listened as they yelled at them for fighting on school ground, thinking.

He stood a little in front of Kei, almost as if he was trying to protect her. He knew that Kei didn't like being yelled at; what kid did? But at least he had developed a bit of tough skin against such harsh words, against such a harsh voice. Fukou glanced out of the corner of his eye to look at Kei. Her head was bowed respectively, or maybe out of shame at getting caught. But her cheeks were still red from exertion, her breath still coming out in gasps, and when her young mouth closed to swallow, her expression turned stubborn. Better, there was a glint in her blue eyes that made him wonder if she could have fought for longer.

Fuu whipped his head back around when she looked up at him. The teacher told them to walk to the principal's office, and they followed her, both of them worried as to what their parents were going to say. Kei caught up to Fukou, and she looked up at him, her expression worried.

"I'm sorry."

The sincerity in her voice… no, the _simplicity_ of her voice surprised him. He looked down at her sharply, his green eyes a little softer than normal, maybe because he was so off balance. As he walked, he slowly felt the part of his mind that had steered him in fighting ebb away, and he felt his body again, not noticing how much like air or water he had felt when he had been fighting Kei. His body was sore; very sore. Muscles were pulled, his whole body felt like boulders, and he couldn't quite catch his breath. "For what?" he asked, hoping she didn't mean that she was sorry for getting him into trouble. As far as he was concerned, it had been worth it.

She slowly pointed at his face. He touched where she was pointing, and felt warmth on his fingers, slick fluid coating his fingertips. When he pulled them away, they were red. He stared at his fingers in shock.

"I guess that one of my punches wasn't as closed as I thought it was. My fingernail must have caught your cheek." Again, she looked away. "I'm sorry."

He couldn't think of anything to say. After wiping his fingers off, he ruffled her hair, and smiled at her, this time a genuine smile that made her whole face turn deep pink. "No one has ever been able to land a punch like that before. Don't be sorry. I wouldn't mind doing it again. As far as I'm concerned, you're all right, Konseki-san."

"Think… think we could fight again like that?"

Fukou nodded, and he was taken completely by surprise when Kei launched herself at him, wrapping her arms around his neck and giving him a clumsy kiss on his cheek. They both turned pink when the teacher caught them like that, but the moment her back was turned, they broke out into laughter.

* * *

"They were doing what!" Sora held her daughter tighter as Fukou's dad yelled at the principal. The tall man whirled on his son, pointing an accusing finger at him. "How many times have we told you not to fight? You…" 

Sensing that something had to be said, the teacher that had first seen Kei and Fuu start fighting spoke up, her firm voice quieting even the monstrous man. "Sir, both children seemed to be naturals. It was... it was almost like something from out of the movies. Shouldn't they develop these abilities to their fullest? Self-defense is hardly something that should be laughed at or denied…." Fuu's father looked unconvinced, and she wondered how Fuu could meet such hard eyes without blinking or wincing. "It's also been proven that children who are healthy in body and have the discipline of learning something like martial arts perform better in school."

That got his attention. As he stood considering it, his anger vanishing in dreams of his son being a better student (not that he wasn't good at Japanese already, it was just that some of his other marks were quite low), Kei spoke up. Her cheeks turned pink, and the girl buried underneath the demon that had been fighting Fukou disappeared.

"Yasha…"

She only said his name, she didn't say anything else until her mother looked at her and urged her to continue. When Kei spoke up, she was louder. "Yasha-sama, from the shrine, Ms. Higurashi's husband, doesn't he teach that? I know he knows it myself because I've watched him do his _katas_ before, practicing with an antique sword that was rusted and chipped. Couldn't… couldn't we go to him to have him teach us? It would give us exercise, and a place to fight each other, and it's close to home. It would give us a chance to take out our aggression."

She didn't like telling people that she had watched Yasha-sama practice. She could still remember the first time she had found him like that.

_Kei had had a bad day at school. She ran from her home to the shrine, her muscles sore and her lungs burning for fresh air when she reached the tree. She slipped over the ropes again and sat down on the grass, looking up at the big tree, and she thought, letting the otherworldly tree calm her mind._

_When her mind settled, her breathing easing off and quiet solitude descending upon her shadows, she heard it. It was like a whistling, but short, and more musical, more _honed_. She stood up, following her ears to the sound, and leaned against the Goshinboku, peering around the tree._

_Under the full moon, Yasha stood there, his braided hair unbound, a sword in his hands. His skin flashed in the moonlight, as if his body was as sharp and detailed as the antique blade he held. Her mouth opened a little, her blue eyes widening as she watched the way he held the sword, watched how skillfully his body moved when he practiced with the weapon. It was…_

_Poetry._

_Then, out of nowhere, those gold eyes turned to hers, looking directly at her. Inuyasha smiled a little, and then kept on exercising. When it was all over, Kei walked over to him cautiously, and handed him the water bottle that was laying with his shirt and a towel. She was a little amused to see it had a puppy on it. Was it a gift from his daughter, maybe? Did Yasha like puppies? Kei rather preferred cats herself. He thanked her, and she shyly looked up at him. Why did he always wear bandannas? With hair like that, he should let be free! "Where did you learn to do that?"_

_Those gold eyes watched hers, and he bent down on one knee, looking at her closely. Her face went red when she saw herself reflected in those eyes, and she wasn't the least bit scared when he smiled, revealing sharp teeth. "It's a secret."_

_Kei watched him several times after that, slowly getting closer, and watching for longer.__ At time she even thought about grabbing a stick and trying to do what he was doing. She could pick out names of some of the moments he was doing as if the wind were whispering them to her, but she never questioned. She never questioned anything. It wasn't that she wasn't curious, because like most human beings, she wanted to know how everything worked, why the grass was green and the sky blue, but whenever she started to wonder why she knew the different types of blocks or the names for the pattern-dance he was doing, or why Yasha really did look like a spirit, her mind stopped thinking until a reasonable question appeared._

_Somehow, she felt that questions like that were not for a little child to be answering. She just had to accept that such a man, such a spirit or god, _was_ on Earth, end enjoy the time she had with him while he was there._

Fukou knew.

He had seen her watch him before, and wondered what was so special about Yasha. Sure, even Fukou had to admit that he had been slightly awed by the man's looks at first, but whenever Kei talked about him, there was this odd sound in her voice, as if she were speaking about an idol. It sickened him; it interested him, and it also made him jealous.

He just didn't know why.

"Yasha?" Sora repeated. She knew full well what that word meant. She looked down at her daughter with an expression of disapproval. "Kei-chan. Why would you call someone such a rude name?"

"But Mommy," she said, looking up at her mother, "that's what he tells us to call him. Fuu-sama calls him Yasha-sama too. Trust me, Momma, if Yasha-sama didn't want us calling us that, he'd let us know. He's really very sweet, he can just get loud sometimes. Yasha-sama is all bark."

Fuu's father looked at him, and then back at Kei, and at the sand that still covered her body and clothes. 'She _is_ a dirty little thing, isn't she?' he thought. His mouth began to turn into a sneer. Kei suddenly learned how Fukou had gotten so good at sneering. She really didn't like his dad that much, and Kei just wanted to sit with Fukou, curling up next to him in the chair, and be with him to keep him safe and warm. It was fairly obvious that Fuu didn't have much respect for his father, despite the straightness of his back or the way he looked his father square in the eye.

"Do we really want to have them train together?" he asked. "I mean, they were caught fighting together in the schoolyard. No doubt that little…"

Kei's parents tensed, and Fukou interrupted his father, though he wasn't sure if he was trying to protect Kei's honor consciously or subconsciously. At least he knew he was doing it; that had to be some kind of mental step. "Father," he said quietly, "it's not like we were trying to hurt each other. It was just for fun."

"Fun, boy? Is that why you have that nasty looking cut on your cheek?" Kei looked away, ashamed. It was a bad looking cut. It was all red and pink and looked painful, but Fukou just stared right back up at his father, not saying anything. "It's a weird definition of fun that you have, boy…"

* * *

Despite the comments of Fukou's father, it was set up: Fuu and Kei were going to join the small dojo that met in the afternoons at the shrine, and they would be learning together. Their first class was on Tuesday, and Yasha had told them to be there early. He wanted to see what type of stuff they were able to do after hearing the circumstances of their fight. 

"Konseki-san!" Fukou hollered up at the window. "We're going to be late! Damn it, Kei, you're making _me_ late!"

He was about scoop up some rocks when the front door opened. Sora smiled at him. "Fuu-kun," she smiled at him, handing him a cold water bottle, as if she had known that he didn't have one, "Kei-chan is already there. She wanted to be certain to be there early."

He swore, suddenly turning red when he remembered he was talking to an adult. He bowed his head respectfully, thanking her, before he took off. He ran to the shrine, and looked around. The main part of the shrine was deserted, but as he approached the God Tree, there was Kei, praying, just as he thought she would be. He approached quietly, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder. She jumped at his touch, turning around to look at him. She looked nervous, standing up on shaking legs and smoothing out her gi.

"I see you managed to convince your mother to get you a black gi," she noted out loud. He nodded, and she touched the belt around his waist. "At least we're still the same belt color," Kei teased him.

He smiled a little, preoccupied. Fukou turned towards the house, but when he noticed that Kei wasn't following him, he turned around and grabbed her wrist, dragging her forward. "Come on! Kagome-sama is home today. You'll love her, Kei! She's a lot like your mother. She's a part time teacher, but she's _nice_!"

"Konseki-san!" she yelled, reminding him with a slap on the back of his head.

Ignoring her, he knocked on the door. Kagome answered it, and Kei wondered if she had ever seen anybody that looked so much like an angel. Where was Jou; he was the one who liked angels, she just wanted to see spirits. She was only thirty, her eyes still bright and her step still with some jejune nature to it, as if she were eternally young on the inside. The house behind her was warm, inviting, and smelled wonderful. She smiled when she saw Fukou. "Fuu-kun! And who's this?"

Fukou smiled proudly. "Kagome-sama, this is Konseki. She's my next door neighbor."

Kei bowed, a full out proper bow. Kagome, as priestess to the shrine, was due some respect, and for an angel like her to have tamed a man like Yasha… It was out of more than just polite respect that made Kei feel so awed. And yet, at the same time as she felt odd, she felt… familiar. It didn't seem to be right, treating this woman as if she were some far away human being filled with a power that Kei couldn't understand. She was still a human being, and she should be treated as such.

Kagome studied her closely a moment, smiling softly, and the woman's blue eyes widened slightly. She invited them in, and Fukou pushed Kei inside before the girl had a chance to respond. Kagome quickly pulled out freshly baked cookies and poured them glasses of milk, talking politely to Fukou as she inquired about his friends, talking about Jou, Neji and Shin with such precise detail it seemed as if she knew them herself, though Fukou vouched that she hadn't.

There it was.

If she closed her eyes, focusing her other senses on the room, she could feel it. The _difference_, the _strangeness_, the _power_… it was in the room, filled the room, hidden under the scent of cinnamon and incense and freshly cut flowers, it was there. It was the same power she could sometimes feel when she focused on the Goshinboku. It made her feel safe, and warm… odd though, that she could feel it so far from the tree. Maybe… maybe, as Kagome was the priestess of the shrine, it was coming from _her_…

Yes, yes it fit. It fit that the woman who smiled sweetly and treated a seven year old child on equal level would also be filled with power, the same power as the tree that she protected and the ground that she preserved. But…

No. No, there was another energy in the room. Why hadn't she noticed it before? Well, she had never been in the house, and outside, the Goshinboku's power seemed to rule everything. The ground was saturated with power from the tree, she was sure of it. Only in the little house was this new power strong enough to be detected. 'Probably,' she realized, 'probably because the owner of that power lives here.'

Kagome's voice snapped her from her thoughts. Smiling sweetly and sipping her own glass of milk, Kagome outstretched her free hand and repeated her question. "May I read your palm, Kei-chan?"

Kei outstretched her hand. Kagome took it, and Kei felt a shiver run down her spine at the woman's touch. Her fingers traced the lines in Kei's palm, and Kei felt her hand start to tingle. The power that was in the air raced up her arm, disappearing into her body.

Finally, the silence was broken. Kagome smiled at the little girl. "You have a good life in your palm, Kei-chan. A strong love line, symbolizing that either in a past or future life or in this one, you will find a love that is true, and you will be bound even tighter to that person. You have a strength in you which you have not yet tapped."

Her hand was her own again. Kei looked at it, puzzled. "Kagome-sama, don't most people also talk about your life line when they read your palm?"

"Oh, she could read about your life line, Kei-chan, and tell you about it, but where would the surprise be? At least this way, you're still wondering." She turned at the voice and felt herself blush when Yasha learning in the doorway, his arm braced against the door and those beautifully intense eyes staring at her. Slowly, they moved from her to his wife, and his smile became radiant. He slid his arm off the door frame. "All right you two, get outside and start doing stretches."

As soon as they left, Yasha was bending over Kagome, his gold eyes so intense as they looked at her that she soon turned as red as Kei had been. Inuyasha smiled when he saw her reaction. He didn't take his eyes from hers as he kissed her lips once. "I missed you." Her response was cut off as he wrapped his arms around her and picked her up out of the chair, pressing his lips against hers tightly and feeling her shock before she kissed him back feverishly, throwing his bandanna to the ground and running her fingertips through his hair, the tips of her fingers brushing his ears and making Inuyasha want to start howling from pleasure.

He let her go abruptly—or at least it seemed abrupt after the way his kiss had left her body feeling cold without his touch. Inuyasha rubbed her shoulders, his ears standing up straight and tall, happy to be free from that bandana. "So?" he asked eagerly. "Was I right?"

She nodded, licking her lips and tasting him on it. How she'd missed her husband while she'd been in the Feudal Era! "You were right, Inuyasha. Kei is assuredly Sango-chan reincarnated. She doesn't seem as changed as Miroku's soul though. In fact, compared to the Sango we met, she seems happier. Miroku did a lot of good at healing the wounds that Naraku left on Sango's soul. Do you… God, it's weird, going back them and seeing our friends, only to come here and see them again, and they don't remember us at all."

She leaned on the window, watching Kei and Fukou exercise. Inuyasha wrapped his arms around her waist, kissing her neck and leaning his chin on her shoulder. He sighed. "I know… I keep on expecting Fuu to make some weird perverted joke and have Kei hit him for it."

"But seeing them makes me wonder… do they still love each other? Was Sango attracted to Miroku because she was lonely, desperate for any kind of attention after finding that everyone she loved was dead, or was it real? Are two people destined to be together, or are you and I just luck? Fukou, at least on the surface… is nothing like the Miroku we see on his surface. Is this boy the man that Miroku always hid from us?" Kagome sighed, rubbing her forehead. "I guess that only Sango would be able to answer that question. We're only Miroku's friends, but she's his wife."

"You think too much," he purred in his wife's ear. He kissed Kagome's cheek, feeling her smile, and he tightened his grip on her, letting her go. "Well, let's see what those two remember…"

She called out his name, not bothering to take her gaze from the window. "Don't underestimate them, Inuyasha. Not when it comes to fighting. Fuu told me what happened in their little play-fight in the school yard. Their instinct to punch, block, break their falls… it's been bred into them. And why shouldn't they be? Sango, first and foremost, was a fighter. I guess that those instincts were so strong, they couldn't be locked away like memories of the Sengoku Jidai."

"Then how do you explain Fuu? Shouldn't his memory be of being a monk?"

Kagome thought a moment, and shook her head. "Fighting too, more than likely. He was trained, he fought for years by himself, and for years with us, and for years with Sango, and he's been teaching people for six years with her, now."

Inuyasha made a sound of approval. "Well, just as long as it's fighting he remembers and not the kazaana. No one needs to remember the shit like that from that life." He kissed Kagome's cheek again before taking his leave of her, and starting to find out exactly how much Kei and Fukou remembered.

* * *

They stood across from each other, and Inuyasha barked for them to bow. They did so, and assumed whatever fighting stance felt easiest. Fukou sunk into a very loose horse stance, and Kei into cat-stance again. Inuyasha wondered why Fukou's stance was half-assed before he remembered: while they might have the knowledge of how to do things properly, their muscles didn't have the necessary strength or dexterity. Even more amusing, he found when he thought more, was that they had chosen stances which would allow them to fight in the close they wore most often in the feudal era, so Fuu's stance let him stand with robes, and Kei's with hers. 

"_Hajime!_"

They stared at each other a second before it was off. Kei started off the attack by sliding his back leg forward and trying to grab her to throw her. Kei blocked his incoming arm, kicking at his bent knee before his other hand could grab the collar of her white _gi_. Inuyasha winced, glad that Fukou had managed to block her attack. If it had hit, she would have easily broken his knee cap.

Back and forth they danced, blocking and attacking again, their faces focused. God, they moved so fast! When did Miroku learn to be so fast? Sango… somehow, he had always expected that she had been holding back skill like that, or maybe she had learned it in the years of her marriage with Miroku. Inuyasha's hands were starting to leave imprints in his arms out of worry, and as his students showed up, they sat down and watched the battle in awe.

He had half a mind to stop what they were doing, but he was entranced. They were pulling some pretty dangerous stuff out there, strikes meant to take down a fully grown man, and they weren't holding anything back. Kei was going from a dodge to a _kuto_ that would break his collarbone as if it were nothing, and from _out of nowhere_ and yet Fukou seemed to expect it, spinning with his arm already raised to block the strike and with his hand already shooting toward her sternum, a strike he had seen making people vomit and choke from the sudden impact. He too, used the strike as if it were really nothing, going in with all his strength and speed, and still, Kei seemed to anticipate the attack, grabbing his wrist and redirecting the energy in it by twisting the wrist. Inuyasha was almost proud when a look of surprise crossed Fukou's face and for a brief moment the boy was actually lifted off the ground, spinning to the ground.

Kei went to put the finishing move on him, and Inuyasha opened his mouth, about to tell her to stop. He wasn't very sure if Kei knew what she was doing, or if the part of Kei's mind that told her body when and how to move knew that this wasn't really an enemy she was fighting. It turned out, however, that he didn't need to say anything. Fuu recovered quickly, and he grabbed her, pulling her down and pinning her to the ground with his body weight, and she struggled.

Inuyasha watched for a moment, filled with horror and awe… if Sango's subconscious was telling her to use moves like _that_, no wonder Miroku liked having sex with his wife! He felt himself start to blush… of course, the fact that they were grunting and panting from exertion didn't help either. Thank God they were only six and seven! Had they been any older, the other kids in his class might be getting nosebleeds.

About to do something, he didn't get a chance to interfere, when their grappling suddenly made Fukou's hand fall on a very bad place, and he applied pressure to try and keep her from getting up. Kei froze when she felt a hand grope her derriere. Her face scrunched, eyes narrowing in anger, and the resounding smack could be heard echoing in the courtyard of the shrine when she smacked him upside his head.

"Pervert!"

The half-demon Inuyasha smiled. It looked as if there were more Miroku in Fukou than he and his wife had thought.

* * *

To be continued... 


	4. Believe

Comrade in Arms

AN: Every time I read this chapter, I want cheesecake.

Fireblade: There will be some resurfacing memories/dreams about what happened in the past, but I steered clear from those, in all honesty. See, I figured that with some of the stuff that they had gone through in their past lives, some of the things would be really traumatic, and would in turn cause trauma in these lives. Plus, because I'm trying to cover so many years, I worried it would be repetitive if every chapter had them having a nightmare or a pleasant dream which made them sad or confused.

Igs: Why wouldn't she know the word pervert?

Demon Exterminator Barbie: I'm afraid that the repetition of the _kuto_ is my fault. I really don't know that many strikes and their purposes, so I reused one of them. The other thing is, when I was writing that chapter, I was distinctly thinking of the way that Sango and Miroku exercised in Dressing Wounds together. What was supposed to be happening was they the both slipped into one of their exercises, taking turns attacking and defending in a set pattern to practice solely on speed, and then when they fought in front of Inuyasha, they had reversed their positions. That's what I was going for, anyway. And I never thought about Inuyasha's perversion. Now that you mention it… it makes me laugh.

Siren: After some of the stuff that Miroku has been through, I think he's going to need a lot more groping to want to remember _everything_ that happened in his past life. But he is going to start remembering it a little bit more. Namely, and this is important, **the person we briefly saw defending Sango in episode 161**. That singular aspect of Miroku, the part of him who is willing to die to save his friends, comes out in this chapter.

Aamalie: Ah… she remembered it from her past life! Yeah… that'll work… And I'm glad. I mean, if it wasn't for your pestering, who knows it would be between my updates. And Iggy of course. :grins:

Serena: lol! No problem! And of course Sango remembers fighting. They both remember things that were like second nature to them, which is, in my opinion, fighting in both their cases. Why? Kagome explains it all: they lived in a time when they needed to fight to live.

Fantastical Queen: Hopefully, I will, but not for a long time. In my opinion, talking about nightmares is one of the hardest things to do. It means you're going to tell someone about something that is yours and yours alone. It's… hard to explain. It gives a chance to have someone look at your mind for a moment, to know what really scares you, and information is power. It can be used for evil purposes. It takes a lot of trust to be able to tell someone your nightmares, especially when it's someone who has known you for so long as a certain type of person (in Fuu's case, a bully) and then to have them come out and say what they are afraid of and have it be something so childish that it can ruin that whole image of you. Does that make any sense? (Either trust, or a moment of insanity…)

Sango: lol! I like the way you explain it! I'll have to save it for when my friends find me writing one!

Chadrific: I had to go and start looking up pictures on Mikaila's site to know which ones inspired me… Okkie: 'Full Circle' most definitely, for this fic, 'Miroku' for DW, 'Modernized' for this fic…. _A lot_ for this fic! I love suave-yet-tough looking Miroku-in-glasses and somewhat ignorant, tomboy-Sango! Hm, upon reflection of this site, I want a scene like 'Pocket' in here…

Ninalee-chan:hugs: You found the plot for this chapter :laughs: It took me several chapters to find it! Yup, the whole plot for this story is Sango healing Miroku.

Thank you for all of the wonderful reviews! I wish there was a kiss in her or something, so I could say it was my Valentine's Day gift…. But I'm going to claim that anyway! Enjoy, everyone! Oh, and the first part of this chapter alludes to Dressing Wounds when Sango and Miroku fight over a pea… or was it a carrot?...

"Believe it or not, everyone has things that they hide.

Believe it or not, everyone keeps most things inside.

Believe it or not, everyone believes in something above.

Believe it or not, everyone needs to feel loved."

-"Believe it or not", by Nickleback

(Um… I admit it… I corrected the grammar…)

Chapter Four: Grade Two: Believe

"You groped Kei-chan?" Neji cried, aghast and obviously disappointed. He sulked, crossing his arms and banging the back of his head under the tree that their group had claimed. "Damn it, Fuu. I wanted to be the first one to grope her. Kei's the only girl that will let me near her so far!"

"Probably because she's the only girl who doesn't see you as a total pervert and the only girl who can kick your ass blindfolded," Shin teased, poking Neji's blonde hair. He perked up, eyes brightening at the prospect of seeing Kei. Things always seemed to be more amusing when she was around, accidentally instigating fights between people by having a different opinion of everyone, and though she was quiet, she made the men feel that sitting around talking to each other was worthwhile with just a simple smile.

But when those fights did break out, damn it was fun to watch Fuu and Kei try and out yell and out word each other!

Kei ran up to them, waving, grinning already. Class had just let out for lunch time, and she handed over her lunch to Fuu so that she could do up her shoe. Neji grinned as the pink kittens on her underwear were just slightly revealed as she did up her shoe, and Shin was more that kind enough to silently point out to Fuu what Neji was looking at. Fuu made a mental note to put something in Neji's food to make him retch out of disgust.

Despite the fight that they had had, and the agreement that the alpha male of their pack would stop treating Kei as if she were a disease, this was much easier agreed upon then accomplished. With Kei's sweet personality, not to mention her tiny height, it was very hard to stop thinking about her as someone they had to protect. Though only six and a half, she had a certain allure to her that made Fuu and Shin fear the years when they too started taking an interest in the opposite flesh. (Jou was far too much of a dreamer to even notice that Kei _was_, in fact, a girl, having grown to accustomed to thinking of her as an angel, and thus beyond his sphere of influence.) Kei's innocence about her own body meant that she completely unaware of how certain stances or sayings sounded, and the males were already getting ready for the day when they would have to fight off other males trying to potential suitors to their alpha female.

Taking her lunch from Fuu, she sat down beside him, but the boy kept standing. Kei reached up and pulled him down by his belt. She opened her lunch box and passed him the rice appetizers, handing him the spare chopsticks. Fuu held the container and they both began to pick at the sticky rice, ignoring the odd looks they always caught from other students.

The other students of the school knew that lunch time between Fukou and Kei was truce time. After and before lunch, they would pick on each other mercilessly, but this time, it was all in good fun, though Kei often found she had mental wounds from his words, uncertain of how to deal with friendly rivalry. If it wasn't for the public fights they displayed, and the number of classes they had disrupted by yelling at each other in the hallway, the entire school would have bet that Sora and Amy would betroth their children any day. Except there were those horrid fights!

A falling leaf floated in the air, distracting Kei. She watched it fall to the ground. Autumn was coming. Already the air was chilly, but not while the sun was out. The sun at least, was still bright and warm.

"Can't you even eat properly?" Fukou growled in a soft voice, half amused and half so hungry he wanted to eat the rice and its box in one gulp.

She looked back down at her lunch to find that she had caught his chopsticks with her own, rather than a chunk of rice as she thought. She looked down at the ground, her cheeks turning pink, and released his chopstick before looking back up to apologize. When she saw his expression, for a moment, just a moment, she was overcome with a feeling of déjà vu. His expression, that very expression, the way he seemed to pretend he was angry and looking for a fight an underneath he was amused, struck Kei as familiar, even though she didn't know why. In a year, she had never seen it before…

Yet she had the vaguest feeling that she had been sitting across from Fukou, like this, and he had been wearing that same expression…

"What is it?"

She shook her head, clearing it of such silly thoughts. She ate lunch with Fuu every day! Of course she would have a feeling of déjà vu! "Nothing, Fuu-sama," she said, picking up a small group of rice. "My imagination was just playing tricks on me."

"Speaking of tricks," Jou said, swallowing the half of the rice cake he had been eating before he had started talking. He repeated himself. "Speaking of tricks, now that it's autumn, you all know what that means! Birthday for me! So, it's two weeks from now, my place, Saturday night, and if anyone doesn't show up then on I am totally going to egg your house. _Certain people_ couldn't make it to festivities, and I won't have it this year. Understand, Angel?"

"Hai, Kitsune. But if my parents say I can't go, then I can't go. They don't think it's proper for me to be the only girl at a party."

"But I don't _know_ any other girls!" Jou complained, looking more mad than disappointed.

Neji grinned. "I know plenty. Want me to bring some so Kei-chan can come too?"

Jou grimaced, and went back to eating. His food was more important than Neji any day. "No thank you, Neji! I don't want you talking to any girls on my behalf! If you do, they're just going to think that I'm a pervert like you, and I don't really want that kind of a reputation!"

"Smart move." Shin ducked a teasing strike from Neji's direction, and the meal continued peacefully. Until dessert came. Her mother, after finding out that Fukou didn't bring a lunch to school and being sworn to secrecy, started packing more food than normal into Kei's lunches. Usually there were two desserts in the lunch box, that way they could both get an equal piece, but for once, there was only one.

One piece of cherry cheesecake stared up at them, making their mouths salivate.

"You cut in half, I pick which one I get first," Kei said, putting the box closer to him. "You're better at stuff like dissecting anyway."

"How do you know?"

"….Fuu-sama, I've seen you dissect Passion Flakies before."

"Point taken." Fukou raised a chopstick, planning on cutting the cheesecake in half, before he noticed one other problem. There was only one cherry on the cheesecake. Somebody was going to get a cherry, and the other would get none. He pointed this out to Kei, and they slowly grinned at each other. Any excuse to fight!

Shin began to wonder if they should back away.

"The rules of engagement are this," Fukou decreed. "One hand only, your shoulders and back have to remain perfectly still, and we fight with chopsticks." He saw that Kei was about to put one chopstick down to fight with it like a dagger, and he shook his head. "Both chopsticks."

She looked at him dubiously, straightening her back and preparing for battle. They both held the box together, whoever managing to get the cherry into their mouths… got to eat the cherry. Jou was quickly elected referee, as he was unbiased, and as it _was_ only for a cherry. He said the word, and they were off.

It was harder than Fukou made it sound. Fighting each other off with only one hand was easy, it was the trick of staying still that hard to do. Kei found she kept on wanting to lean back if he made an attack, or dodge left or right, or lean to get around his hand and steal the cherry.

Nonetheless, they both quickly got a hang of the game, and Fukou grinned, showing her up by closing his eyes as he fought. Not to be outdone and knowing Jou was there to referee, Kei closed her eyes as well, finding that she could almost see the chopsticks in her mind as they moved. She could hear them in the air, feel the air rush by her as his whole arm moved, and it was fairly easy to follow him if she always kept her chopsticks near his.

"Fuu-sama," she asked, "does this seem at all familiar to you?"

The question made him falter. She had perfect timing, because he had just realized that there was something vaguely familiar about fighting her in such a manner. He didn't know why, but when he thought of it, he thought of… a green skirt… brown eyes… and… He stopped fighting, nearly getting stabbed in his wrist before she pulled back. His right hand cramped, and he rubbed it, pressing his fingers hard into the palm.

"You're just imagining things, Kei," he snapped, feeling that somehow, that that green skirt and those brown eyes were dangerous.

"Konseki-san!" she corrected. Then she looked down at the plate and punched him in the shoulder. "And you're a cheater! You stole the cherry while I had my eyes closed!"

"No, I didn't!" he protested, figuring it out very quickly. Kei was honest; she wouldn't cheat and then blame it on him, and he hadn't stolen the cherry… he turned to look at Jou, who was munching away happily on the entire cheesecake he had managed to steal from under their weapons as they battled. Fukou and Kei glanced at each other, before tackling Jou and seeking their revenge for eating their desert.

* * *

Once again, Fukou, Kei, and Wolfsbane walked to school together, the husky with them. Also as usual, Kei kept Fukou between herself and the dog. Though Kei was now slightly larger than the dog—sadly, not tall enough that Wolfsbane jumping on her wouldn't make her fall over from the sudden weight—she was still scared by the husky. Kei was unable to completely let go of dreams where snarling dogs were at her heels, biting at her ankles and clothes. She knew that Wolfsbane was a sweet dog, but…

"Why don't you like Wolfsbane?" Fukou demanded suddenly, stopping in the middle of the sidewalk. "She's trying to be nice to you, but you act as if she's… riddled with disease or something!"

Kei's anger, non existent before Fuu had stopped, exploded on him. "Hello! Did you forget how we met? Your dog attacked me! I thought she was a wild wolf coming to eat me, and you expect me to just start being friendly with her right after that? How do I know that's she not going to try and bite my hand when I go to pet her!"

"My dog wouldn't eat you anyway; she doesn't like grease monkeys, and even if she did, she sure as hell wouldn't be stupid enough to eat one that doesn't have as any meat on its body!"

Her face went bright red. 'Grease monkey?' She felt herself start to loose control of her anger. Wolfsbane, knowing she was partly to blame for the fight and that Fuu had it coming to him, did nothing to stop Kei's rising anger. "You bastard!" She kicked his shin and walked away from him.

"What did I do?" Fukou complained, limping as he caught up to her, Wolfsbane trotting after him. She, at least, liked Kei even if she didn't like her back. It took a smart girl to handle Fuu so well. "I'm just stating the truth! My dog's not dumb!"

"I never said your dog wasn't smart!" Kei shouted over her shoulder. They were starting to get looks from people on the street. Seeing that she wasn't going to beat him to school, limping or not, his legs were too long for her and her knapsack weighed her down, she took a short cut through the park at the corner. "You're the dumb one; leave me alone!"

Fukou skidded to a stop at the edge of the park. They had taken short cuts through the park before. It wasn't like she was going to get lost or anything, but they only took short cuts after school. Before school, it was bad news. All the smokers hung out there, getting as much nicotine as they could before they had to go to school, and worse, they preyed upon unsuspecting grade school kids for lunch money. They were nothing special, nothing hard, and really they weren't much bullies, as the presence of Wolsfbane made them back off. But Kei was a little grade school girl, and all alone…

"Kei! Kei, wait!"

"Konseki-chan!" came the harsh reply and the sound of feet stomping on the ground.

Fukou rolled his eyes, gripping his belted books tighter. "You are such an idiot, Kei!" he hissed to himself, not once remembering that he was the one who hadn't told her about the park's gang in the first place. He looked at Wolfsbane, who was started to become distressed, snarling quietly and edging closer to the park's entrance. Fuu was in agreement with his dog.

They took off into the park.

* * *

Calling Fukou names under her breath, Kei stopped short when she heard footsteps behind her in the dense thicket of trees. Dropping her knapsack to give herself a wider area of movement, she spun around and found Wolfsbane looking up at her, snarling a little. She paled, but went red cheeked again when she saw Fukou running up behind his dog. "Stop following me! Stop teasing me! You're… you're such a jerk! I, I…"

His hand landed on her mouth, his breath close to her ear and his body so close she could feel his warmth. Kei felt herself let out a little whimper, taken off guard. If Fukou noticed the sound of weakness, he was kind enough not to say anything, and when he did speak, his voice was a whisper, his lips touching her ear when he spoke. "Keep very quiet. Listen, and you can hear them."

She did as he said, opening her eyes beyond his voice and breath as she closed her eyes. He was a distraction, they way his breath echoed and his lips now and again touched her sensitive skin, but she was able to get around it, and heard the sound of snapping branches. There was a faint smell of acrid smoke in the trees, and it itched her nose. Kei could tell they were the signs of approaching danger.

"Quickly. Quietly. We'll sneak out." She blushed and nodded, his hand falling away. She picked up her bag and they started to walk away, but it was too late. They had been spotted.

A hand reached out and grabbed Kei's bag, pulling on it so heavily that she fell to the ground. Cruel laughter filled the air, closely followed by Wolfsbane's growls. The dog's fur bristled as she spun to see a boy about twice the age of Kei grab the roots of her hair, looking down at the bag held in his other hand. The dog's barred teeth were shining with saliva, she looked ferocious, but she wouldn't attack, and both she and Fukou knew that. If Wolfsbane attacked these young adults, she would get herself into trouble, and then Fukou would have no one on which he could rely. But the thirteen year olds didn't know that, and they were instantly wary.

"She certainly is strong for such a little thing!" one of the girls exclaimed, peering down at Kei who refused to let go of the bag in her arms. Another child yelled at Fukou to call off his dog.

Fukou felt anger rising in him, swirling around his mind like a tempest, his green eyes narrowing at the sight of Kei struggling with a boy twice her size. Dirt was settling in patches on her school uniform, face and hair, the smell of the earth lifting up from the ground as she dug her feet into the dirt to get a better grip. They were such bastards, attacking someone so small and so much younger than they were!

Leaves swirled around his feet, as if caught in a whirlwind that surrounded him. A primitive growl escaped his throat, and he cracked his knuckles single handedly. The other young teenagers that formed the circle holding Fukou hostage backed away a little when they realized the sound wasn't coming from the husky. Kei's blue eyes snapped open at the sound, realizing that Fuu was going to start a fight. When she saw him, even she was a little scared.

In all of the fights she had had with him in the past year, she had never seen him look quite as serious or menacing as he did at that moment. His lips were in a tight line, now and then turning into a snarl as he assessed the situation. His green eyes were blazing, his hands clenching and flexing, ready to attack at any moment. Fukou stared at the girl holding Kei. "Let her go."

The wind rushed by Kei's face, and the girl let her go. Kei surged forward, hurrying to Fuu's side, not even noticing that she was standing beside the snarling husky she normally avoided. Fuu's eyes flickered down to hers before he looked at the large girl that had yelled at him to call off his dog.

"You know how things work, boy! There's a price for crossing through our land! Pay up!" She outstretched her hand, waiting for a sweet or for some money, but Fukou didn't move. She repeated her final words again, and again Fuu just ignored her.

Fukou called the girl a name that made Kei gasp at his language. Kei could feel the anger radiating off of Fukou. It made his muscles twitch, his hands shake, and his voice became uncontrollable. Worse, Kei could feel it catching. His face turned to her slightly, his eyes not leaving the five teens that surrounded them. "Kei, do you think…"

"I can do anything!" she hotly retorted. She dropped her bag and raised her hands. Tossing her pigtails over her shoulder, her legs took on her favorite stance, and she touched the back of his shoulder with hers, making sure no one could attack him from behind. "Two for each of us and one for Wolfsbane?"

He flashed her one of his smiles. "You read my mind, Kei."

"Konseki-san!"

The leader threw her sweater to the ground. "So, you're going to fight, are you? Man, second graders are getting stupider every year. Fine, rough them up a bit," she told the others, rolling up the sleeves of her dress shirt, "but don't actually hurt them. If he talks and identifies us, _then_ we can break every bone in his body."

They ran in, but Fukou and Kei were ready for them. Kei dodged under a punch, blocking a kick with her free hand before palm striking the chin of her attacker. He crumpled to the ground, holding his jaw, disoriented. Fukou immediately punched an attacker, blocking a strike aimed for the back of Kei's head and throwing the girl to the ground. Fuu didn't care about taking it easy on girls. He was so furious all he could do was let his body move on its own, trying to protect the young girl at his back. He was unaware of everything else, from the shock and curses of his enemies when his punches drew blood, or the wind that screamed through the park, covering up the sounds of Kei's _kiais_ and other sounds of the fight from passersby.

When he saw the girl that Kei had taken down get up, a rock in her hand, he grabbed Kei's arm, pulling her back so that they fought side by side. Kei smiled fleetingly with relief when the attack went right by her, and they shifted, Kei kicking her enemy and Fukou grabbing the wrist of the girl with the rock. He squeezed as hard as he could, the girl actually crying from the pain he was creating. He spoke, and Kei was glad she couldn't see the expression on his face, because his voice was more than frightening enough.

"You _bastard_!"

Kei's shock at his language and his obvious anger came to a halt when she saw the leader run at her. She grabbed the girl's shirt, throwing her back to her and tossing the older girl over her shoulder. Everyone stopped from attacking further when they heard a disgusting cracking sound in the air, and a scream. Everyone turned to see Fukou was still holding the wrist of his assailant, though it was hanging at an odd angle. He flung the older girl away, and the girl cradled her broken wrist.

Everyone was stunned. Fukou breathed heavily, anger swirling around him with each breath, leaves rising and falling, as if caught in the anger. Even Wolfsbane had stopped growling, whining a little as she tried to calm her master down. Kei ran to him, gripping his arm tightly. For a moment she feared that in his anger he wouldn't recognize her, but as he looked at her, the bitterness in his eyes softened at seeing she was unharmed. Then he turned away, unblinking, not looking at anybody, his eyes hiding behind his dark bangs.

"We should go," she whispered, stroking his arm soothingly.

He didn't even agree. He didn't even look at her. He passed her the knapsack laying forgotten in the dirt, his face that cold expression that made his two female friends wonder if there was someone even in there. She took the bag, noticing how tight the muscles of his body were, and he guided Kei out of the park, his hand warm on her back but sending chills down her spine at the same time. They left behind several stunned eighth graders, one of them huddled in a ball on the ground, crying her eyes out.

'He broke that girl's wrist, just like that!' Kei thought as he escorted her out of the park. As many times as that thought ran through her head, she wasn't afraid of him, she couldn't think of him as anything but the boy next door who teased her and put on a brave face for the world, even though she didn't know why he felt he had to act so tough. 'He broke it, just like that! But for what? Why? Why would he do anything so stupid, or mean? What if that girl tells her parents what had happened? Fuu-sama would be charged with assault!'

A moment later she realized how silly that thought was. That was no way that teen would ever tell anyone that a second grader had broken her wrist. It would be too embarrassing.

"Fuu-sama? Fuu-sama?" Kei kept trying to get his attention. He walked stiffly, apparently unaware of Kei or Wolfsbane at his side. He seemed lost. Kei slipped her hand into his, and Fukou didn't say anything at all, but after a moment or too, he held her hand back, though he dropped it before they entered school grounds.

He didn't speak at all that day. All day he walked through a fog. At lunch, Kei tried to draw him back into reality by giving him all of her dessert, but he didn't even touch the lunch. Kei was a little more reserved than normal as well, but she refused to tell anyone about the incident when they asked why she and Fuu were acting odd. Fukou dropped her off at her house after school, as he usually did. He waited until she went inside the house, and then he went home himself.

Calmly, he walked through the house and made sure he was home alone. Taking the clock-radio from his room, he went to the bathroom, plugged it in, and turned it on. Wolfsbane whined, laying down and watching Fukou as he sat on the edge of the bathtub and started running the water. Only when the sound of the water pouring into the sealed bathtub and the angry rock music acted as a barrier, silencing the room from the ears of eavesdroppers, did Fukou began to cry.

Why had he done that? What was wrong with him? Fukou knew he wasn't like other boys his age. He tried very hard to be normal, whatever that was, but every once in a while when his mind wandered, he knew things he shouldn't, dreamed of crazy things like demons that chased him down hallways that went nowhere, or his body did things it shouldn't know how to do. Like fight. Like how to break a wrist. Like how to meditate.

He _was_ different, and it scared him because he didn't understand _why_ he was different.

Sliding off the bathtub's edge, he wrapped his arms around Wolfsbane's neck, burying his tear-stained cheeks in her gentle fur. She lapped at his neck and face, trying to comfort him. Her heavy tail thumped now and then on the bath mat.

He'd gotten so mad! He saw those people hurting Kei, yelling at his dog, surrounding them, threatening them, laughing, jeering, surrounding, staring, laughing, dangerous, mocking, taunting, surrounding… always getting closer… Fukou had _needed_ to hurt them, to hurt them before they hurt his friends.

It had felt _right_.

Whimpering with pain as his right hand and arm began to ache, he let go of Wolfsbane. It felt like claws were tearing at the inside of his arm. He turned off the running water clumsily with his left hand, plunging his arm into the collected water, school uniform and all. The water was so hot, it was steaming. His fingers hurt, burned, and the pain took his mind off of everything else.

Fukou lost himself in the pain, lost in the confusion and the fear that made him worry, that made him think he really was an accident. Maybe he was dangerous. Maybe he was inhuman, a monster. Maybe he was so much of an accident that he wasn't even human! These question, which normally plagued him, disappeared into the steaming water. One question, however, refused to leave. _WHY_? It pounded in his mind at every turn, unavoidable.

Wolfsbane placed her head in his lap, and he laced his fingers in her soft grey fur. She knew why he was different, if only he could understand her. Fuu was an alpha male; he wanted to protect his family, of which Kei and Wolfsbane had become a part. The fear of being unable to protect them was maddening. Alpha males were born and reared to protect, to fight. To fail at protecting was to fail at their reason for being, to loose their place in the pack and become nothingness.

"Fuu-sama! Fuu-sama!"

He looked to the window. Kei leaned on it, hoping to be let in. He sighed and stood up, fat drops of steaming water landing on the ground. Pushing open the window, he leaned in, their noses almost touching, and he was obviously very grumpy. "What do you want?"

"May I come in?" He grunted a reply and she clambered into the room. Fukou went back to the bath, and Kei sat on the toilet seat lid. She absentmindedly stroked the husky that went to her side. They were quiet, listening to the music, and Fuu tried to dry his face with his dry sleeve, tried to hide his tears. Kei pretended that she didn't know he had been crying. "What are you doing?"

"Why do you care?" he snapped.

"Well," she began, uncertain of what to say next. She could call him a friend, though he was nowhere near as good a friend as Jou. She hated him. He teased her. Logically, she had no reason to care what he was doing. Kei shrugged. "I just care."

She thought he wasn't going to answer. Finally, he admitted, "My hand hurt. I thought soaking it might make it feel better."

"Let me see," she said softly. He looked over at her, Wolfsbane sitting by her side proudly, her blue eyes concerned and a blush on her cheeks. She looked cute like that, and he wondered why talking with him earnestly made her look as though she had just come out of a fight. She let out her captured breath when she saw the expression on his face was that of the normal, studious Fuu, not the boy who teased her cruelly, the automaton she had seen that morning, or the one who scared her. He was just himself. "Please, Fuu-sama."

He sat beside her, holding out his hand. She brushed it gently and he winced in pain. Kei apologized, but offered the kneeling boy an angelic smile. "I know how to make this feel better. Pass me your first aid kit and that cloth." She leaned back, holding his soaked arm in her lap and gently cleaning, cooling the burned skin. Kei worked steadily, and peered down at Fukou now and then. Finally, she said, "It was interesting, fighting with you rather than against you today."

He tensed, awaiting the feared topic of his ferocity. It never came.

She lowered his arm and knelt beside him on the floor. "But you should trust me more. You've seen me fight. Don't… don't be my knight in shining armor, Fuu-sama. Be my partner. Watch my back, don't try and protect me from the world itself."

Fuu was curious. He lifted an eyebrow. "And if I refuse? If I'd rather be your enemy?"

"Then at least I'll know how deep your dark side is, even if you don't, and you'll never become enough of an enemy to me that I would ever _really_ hate you." She touched his cheek, drawing his face close, lowering her voice. "It felt right to you too, didn't it? It felt right, fighting back to back like that." He nodded, and they were quiet. "This… this feels right too, doesn't it?" He nodded again.

"Fuu-sama, you're not the only one who feels as if they don't belong, who questions themselves or why they know what they shouldn't. You're not the only one who feels as if something huge is missing from your life, and you mourn it, even though you don't know what it is. You're not the only one who is scared of themselves. But I've fought with you and against you. I know you, even if you don't know yourself. You're mean, you're sullen, but you're valiant and fun, and as calming and gentle as you can be infuriating." With that, she leaned forward and planted a kiss on his cheek.

"Don't be like that," he said, pushing her away. "You freak me out when you start acting like a girl, Kei."

"Konseki-san!" She threw a bar of soap at him, and this began the Bathroom Battle, which Wolfsbane won when she jumped into the bathtub, soaking Kei and Fuu as she tried to escape the rolling war.

* * *

Kei sat cross-legged before the Goshinboku, trying very hard not to cry as she rubbed her shoulder. Class had ended ten minutes ago, but Kei didn't want to go home, not until she could move her shoulder again. It hurt; she'd injured it trying a throw. Her mind had told her body what to do, but she had forgotten the warning Yasha had once given her: though your mind knows what to do, your body is filled with limitations. Her shoulder felt like it was dislocated; how was she supposed to explain that to her parents?

"Fuu wasn't in class today." Kei could sense her teacher approaching before he spoke. She knew he was there, though she could not explain how she knew. Inuyasha sat beside her, laying his sword in his lap. She had noticed that he rarely let go of the sword he called Tetsusaiga. It was always either at his side or in his hands. Even when he was being the _uke_, the fighting partner, the sword was at his waist.

"He wasn't in school today either. He wasn't feeling very well," she said, wondering if it was a lie. Fuu had seemed to be in a good mood when she had snuck back out of his house the night before. Maybe his arm was still hurting… he hadn't even answered the door when she had brought him his homework. Kei was very quiet.

"Sensei," the little girl began, "would you think it would be odd if I told you that being under this tree makes me feel safe, like I'm home, but very sad?"

He was just as quiet, and he chose his words carefully. It was a sign that made Inuyasha a little sad. Old age and wisdom were creeping up on him. He stared at the tree, his dark eyebrows so contrasted against his skin that his bitter face was visible in the dim light. "I wouldn't think that it was odd at all. This tree is very old, and has many stories and feelings attached to it. Maybe you feel safe because you pick up on the memories of a young woman who might have been married here, while it makes me feel angry and lonely because I remember how once a young demon was pinned to the tree, made to sleep by a priestess who hated him."

"A demon?" Kei snickered slightly, though she was thoughtful about his suggestion. "Demons don't _really_ exist, sensei. They're just legends."

Inuyasha looked at her from the corner of his eye. Usually Kei loved hearing stories about young kitsunes who braved great dangers, or the hatred of a full demon over his half-brother, or the way the hero half-demon would battle a full demon to protect his would-be mate. Kei was never so cynical. Now Inuyasha knew _something_ was wrong, and was not shy to ask Kei about the sudden change in her philosophy.

At first keeping her gaze locked on the God Tree, she slowly turned to her teacher, and he saw sadness in her blue eyes, such a one as no child should bear. "Why do Fuu-sama and I know things that no one else our age knows? I can only think of two reasons: either there is something wrong with us, or the demons of this world are playing with us. I would rather be crazy than to ever, _ever_ let some demon toy with my mind. Fuu-sama… he… the other day, he hurt someone very badly, sensei, and I think he did it because he was protecting me. He scared himself by acting like that, and I just wish that I could help him, but I don't know how."

Placing a hand on her head, Inuyasha stroked her dark hair, comforting her as he would have comforted his daughter. "Kei… how do you feel about Fuu?"

"I _hate _him," she quickly answered.

"Why?"

"He teases me a lot! I hate it when he teases me! He doesn't show me any respect at all, and he acts like he's older than he really is and he treats me like a burden! Every time I try to get close to him, he hurts me and he pushes me away!" She let a little growl that surprised Inuyasha. "Though I don't know why I would ever want to get close to that lecher…"

Inuyasha let her go, his voice still gentle, though he was somewhat amused. "But you, Kei, are the only one who understands him. Though it hurts you, be there for him, and one day, he'll open up to you."

"How do you know?"

"How do you think Kagome managed to get me to marry her?"

She stared at him a moment, and Inuyasha was caught off guard when she threw herself at him, burying her face in his chest and clinging to his shirt. She was crying so hard she was sobbing. He didn't know why she was crying, but nonetheless, he wrapped his arms around her. Inuyasha didn't noticed when he tears changed into ones of pain from her hurt shoulder, rather than tears shed because of the heavy burden he had placed over her.

'I will be there for you, Fuu, I swear I will!'

* * *

-To Be Continued 


	5. Clumsy

Comrade in Arms

AN: Today, I finished writing an essay. Only upon finishing my conclusion did I realize: I'm analyzing ancient Greek culture through a Roman myth written several centuries after Greece was conquered by Rome. _Sweatdrops_ I suppose that it's too hopeful of me to think that my teacher might pass that small mistake over. Oh well. Posting will make everyone feel better, and I will catch the good mood in time for me to sleep!

Fireblade: Is he a Buddhist? I don't really know. At this point, I think that they're too busy dealing with school and trying to understand. Maybe when he's older Fuu will make some kind of decision as to what religion he takes, but that's just me. But yes, he is suffering from a phantom wind-tunnel. And I am having so much fun with Jou's character!

Fantastical Ebony: I agree. When I was little, I hated being teased. Now I'm not happy unless I get teased at least once by my old high school friends. I like the verbal arguments I can into in response to teasing. And I think that's why Fukou really does like Kei. He likes the fact that he can tease her, and she'll just turn around and dish it back to him.

DarkHeartKeyblade: They will grow up, don't worry. The little kid years covers how they grow up, and more relationship progression will be made when they become teenagers.

Demon Exterminator: Yes, I have been thinking about Inuyasha a lot. For some reason, all of his years seem to have cut up with him at once, and we get to start to see him being more responsible. I figure he has to grow up eventually! I mean, he's a dad now, and he _was_ aware during those 50 years pinned to the Goshinboku, so he has to have learned something… right?

Serena: I know what you mean I know in the (two) fics I (have time for) reading, I love reading the An's to see if I was mentioned, and I always feel bad when I can't respond to everyone.

Igs: _grins_ and yet she can know 'lecher'?

Hououza: As he's a little kid, I think he just skipped school by pretending to be sick. I don't think you actually find out why he wasn't in school, but you start to learn enough about his home life to make a well-educated guess about it.

Ninalee-chan: I agree with you 'ooh-la-la'! The first time I watched that episode, I think I forgot to breathe for a moment, and every system save my brain shut down, leaving my mind enough energy to replay what he had said. You can see my infatuation with that one line. It comes up… a lot.

Hanyou witch: No, actually, I didn't. I know that 'shi' means death, but I did not know the meaning of 'shin'. I asked my friend to pick a name for the fourth group, because I feel—for some reason—like a circle of friends are more stable with five people (Fuu, Jou, Neji, Shin, and Kei).

Aamalie: I am glad that you are enjoying it so much. And passion flakes are actually passion flakies that were edited by my (expletive deleted) quick edit. In case you still haven't heard of them, they are a snack pastry, with one side coated lightly in sugar, and they are light on fluffy. On the inside is a berry-flavored jam-like substance and some variant form of whip-cream that doesn't have to be refrigerated… hence the ability to carry one of them around as a snack. I worship the passion flakie, but I don't think I've had once since high school… which makes me cry on the inside.

Zhivago: I love Sango too. I worship the ground she walks on. She's just the type of character I love: independent, intelligent, strong, and willful. The nice thing about mangas/anime is that the characters are frozen in a single time span. It's fun to think a little bit before the plotline, and about things which may happen in the plotline's future, but we never think about them dying. And in reality (aka Kagome's time) Sango is already dead. She died 500 years ago. We just don't like thinking about it. And who would like thinking about something like that? And it will be a more romantic story. I don't think I could write a lemon soufflé after writing the characters as seven year olds getting into fights over cheesecake.

Siren: I think it's kind of cute, and Neji is a class on his own. And no, he's not anyone's reincarnation. The only people who are reincarnated thus far are Kei and Fuu (and Kagome, for obvious reasons…)

As for the background, Zhivago bring up a very good point, and one I wish I could rectify. The thing is: I am Canadian. I live in a Candian culture, which has influenced me for the past 20 years. I'm finding it really hard to even _imagine_ being in a culture that's different than mine (incidentally, there is actually a sociological term for that, but I can't recall it right now). Secondly, I don't want to rely on stereotypes to gloss over the impact of my own culture and make things appear Japanese because, let's face it, that's wrong.

The few things I have done, mainly because of the few things I know about Japanese culture, are simply placed around, and easily skipped over because of the relationship between Kei and Fuu.

I am, however, diligently trying to fix this problem, but it's slow going. Besides other projects getting in my way, the opportunity for fluff is _really_ distracting!

Enjoy, everyone, and thank you for all the great reviews!

"And maybe you should sleep, and maybe you just need,

A friend as clumsy as you've been.

There's no one laughing.

You will be safe in here.

You will be safe in here."

Clumsy, by Our Lady Peace

* * *

Chapter Four: Grade Two: Clumsy

Inuyasha found Kagome hunched over paperwork in the living room, books spread all over the table and an intense look of concentration on her face. She tapped the end of her pen against her lips, but when she heard him enter, she spun around in the chair and smiled at him, opening her mouth to say something. Inuyasha held up a hand to stop her. "Let me enjoy this for a moment."

Her hair was down, falling gently on her bare shoulders. Her pose on the chair and the tank top showed off her skin, and her long legs were crossed, bare under the lines of her short skirt. She looked like a very provocative student, but really, she was a teacher. Kagome had said she missed out on school so much that she wanted to spend her whole life there… and she had. Though it was hard, running the shrine after her grandfather had passed on and raising a child with Inuyasha—who, though he had matured, was still not the best person with children in the world—Kagome would only ever smile and say sweetly: "Anything is easier than fighting Naraku".

She was only in her first year of substitute teaching, and she was getting a handle on some of the things she had to teach: like math. History, her major, and biology, they were no trouble. But math was a pain in the ass. Of course, having to spend time watching the shrine in the Sengoku Jidai was also a bit of a problem.

But, somehow, she was getting through it all, thanks to help with her family and friends. Kagome often joked, however, that her 'it's easier than beating Naraku' mantra was magical.

Inuyasha sighed, his gold eyes lingering on her. "Where did you say Kaede was tonight?"

"She's in the Sengoku Jidai, having a sleepover with Arashi and Shippo." Kagome was about to ask why he wanted to know—again, as this was the third time she had told him that—when he pulled her out of the chair and kissed her. Kagome moaned at the sensation, throwing her pencil on the desk and wrapping her arms around him. She had missed being able to be with Inuyasha like this, missed being kissed until she was breathless and he was grinning like an idiot, thinking she was weak for allowing herself to be swept off her feet. Which of course only made her want to show him how tough she really was…

Her feet touched the ground again as he let her go, and the pink in her cheeks turned red from anger when she saw that contemptuous grin on his face. He looked so much like his brother when he smiled like that! It really… it brought out the finer details of his face, and made him look more distinguished. He could really be a prince when he smiled. But when he smiled like _that_ he was more like a pirate prince who needed a swift kick in the head.

Kagome smiled up at him sweetly and reached around, undoing the ties of his bandanna and pulling out the two tiny bobby pins that secured it in place. Inuyasha was still grinning smugly: either he knew what was coming or he was too prideful to think that she could do anything. Kagome worked on getting the knot undone, leaning against him. She gave herself a mental pat on the back when she saw his gaze slip down to the breasts that were pressing against him. Ah, the joys of being small… "How are Kei and Fuu?"

"Good, but the things is… they puzzle me. Sometimes Kei and Fuu seem so much older than they really are that I think they have a few memories wandering around in their heads about their past lives. But you didn't, did you?"

Kagome paused and thought about this. "I didn't remember it, but I think that some people would agree that I was more mature for my age, until they saw me fight with you or with my brother. But on the other hand, the things that they are remembering are the things that are natural to them, like fighting. I could remember how to purify at first, thought it took me awhile to control it. Sango and Miroku are fighters; why shouldn't they remember how to fight?"

He was about respond, but instead he turned into a sigh when she pulled off the bandanna in a flourish and he could stretch his ears again. Inuyasha closed his eyes and leaned his head back slightly, twitching his ears. He felt more like himself again. He hated having to hide his ears with hats all the time, but it was better to hide them then not have them at all. Inuyasha grinned, but as he looked at Kagome, his expression faltered from the look in her eyes.

The man had barely enough time to ready himself before she pounced him, snatching the tip of one of his sensitive ears in her mouth and nipping it harshly. He let out a tiny cry from the sensation before her momentum bowled them both over. They landed on the floor in a tangle of legs and arms, and Kagome refused to let go. Inuyasha, therefore, how to show her how much biting hurt.

Sadly, he got very distracted along the way.

* * *

Kei tried ringing the door bell, and when no one answered after five minutes of waiting, she went around to the side of the house. The light in Fuu's bedroom was on. He should be home, so why wasn't he answering the door? She briefly debated turning around and going the other way, but Kei soon changed her mind, pushing up her sleeves and approaching the porch underneath his window.

'Fuu-sama,' Kei thought to herself grumpily, 'if you want to be left alone, you're going to learn a shred of respect and _tell_ me these things rather than have me start to worry about you and have you act like some type of hermit!' She climbed on the railing of the porch, and from there she gave a cautious jump, grabbing a hold of the edge of the porch. Tears sprang into her eyes from her arm, but she thought of beating Fukou into a massive pulp, and that made her feel a bit better. Grunting with the effort, she pulled herself to the roof of the porch.

Much to her surprise, Fukou sat there. He leaned under his open window, the radio playing in the background again, and he looked bad. Fukou's normal expression was normally slightly stoic, his lips in a thin line, but his green eyes always held this inner light. The expression had always reminded Kei of cats: they could look so pissed off at times, and yet they were still alert and dominant.

Kei glared at him, sitting on the edge of the porch and swinging her legs over the edge. "You were sitting up here and you couldn't give me a bit of help?"

"If I helped you, you might think I had wanted you to show up out of the blue."

She was about to smack him, or make some rude retort when she remembered what her teacher had said. No matter how much it hurt her when he was mean, she had to open herself up to him, to be there for him. Kei smiled sweetly. "I just thought I'd come to brag to you. Yasha-sensei let me use his sword today, since you weren't there. The Tetsusaiga is…"

"No way!" Fuu interrupted, jumping up. "He actually let you use his sword?"

"No… but it's nice to know that your legs are still working. I thought maybe you'd tried to sneak out again and had broken them or something, falling from the porch roof." She got up and moved closer to him, sitting down beside Wolfsbane. Fukou watched her, still standing, and when Wolfsbane placed his head in Kei's lap, he realized she wasn't going to go anywhere anytime soon. He sat back down, following Kei's gaze to the sky. "It's a nice night, isn't it? If it weren't for my house, you'd get a better view from here. I wish I could stay out here and admire it for awhile longer, but I should get home soon. I told Mom that I was coming over here to get your help on an English question."

Fukou's laugh sounded more like a snort. "The genius needs help?"

She licked her lips slowly, and turned her gaze to him, feeling sad. "Everybody needs help sometime, Fuu…."

"Not me…" He crossed his arms and was about to put on his best stoic act before he realized what she had called him. He whipped his head around to look at her, his green eyes wide. He felt a bit of color come to his face, and despite how much he wished it would go away, the beating of his heart kept it there. "What… what did you call me?"

Still smiling like a little angel, her own cheeks a much deeper shade of scarlet than his, she slowly answered his question while she played with Wolfsbane's ears. "I called you Fuu."

Fuu. Not Fuu-sama, or Fuu-sempai, just plain, simple Fuu.

They stared at each other, and Kei was the first one to give in. She looked away and apologized. "That was rude of me to call you that without having you tell me that I could. I apologize for my rudeness."

He turned away, wishing that he had said something. He was normally so full of witty remarks, why couldn't he say anything? He'd… he'd liked hearing her call him Fuu. He liked thinking that no matter how much he teased her, no matter how much hell he put her through, she could take it and tease right back, and… god! How could one person be so ridiculously sweet? Could he tell her? No… it was too late.

Bit by bit, his gaze slid from the night sky to watching Kei play with Wolfsbane's ears. He felt a small smile tug at his lips, and he reached out, taking the hand closest to him and wrapping his around it. Kei said nothing, but her cheeks darkened in surprise, and Fukou merely picked a star in the sky, staring at it as hard as he could so he wouldn't see Kei's reaction to his gesture.

No doubt she would be surprised. Moments like this always surprised Fukou himself. It was just… at that moment, he wanted to have some physical attention, to have someone tell him that it would be all right. 'Just please,' he begged the sky, 'don't let her ask why I need this right now… Please, don't…'

Something crashed inside the house. Kei jumped in surprise when she heard the sounds of yelling. Fukou, on the other hand, as well as his husky, merely let out a mournful sigh. So, his parents were fighting again… for the second night in a row.

"Can't you keep it down?" Amy screeched.

His father's booming voice answered her: "Why? Because you don't want your beloved son to hear that you're such a whore?"

Fuu grimaced at his father's words. He snuck a quick peek at Kei, who looked horrified. Fukou swore mentally, and slipped his hand from out of Kei's, covering her ears with his hands. She moved closer to him, leaning against him a little and Fukou relaxed for the moment, knowing that eventually he would get the third degree.

Eventually, the topic of what she had heard was going to come up, and he was going to relax and enjoy Kei's company as long as he could. Because, he knew, she was going to look at him with pity in her eyes, and that's when he'd do it. He'd hurt her so badly, she would never look at him with anything but hatred. Better that she look at him with hatred than leave him to question if she was just being his friend because she pitied him.

Her weight on his arm was comforting. Fuu closed his eyes, and let himself get lost in the way her hair brushed his fingertips, in the scent of sweat and hard work in her _gi_ and on her skin, taking away the smell of his father's brandy and his mother's home baked cookies that always tasted a little bitter to him.

One day, he'd push her away, but right now… he just wanted some human company.

* * *

The next day, Fukou sighed when he saw that Kei was waiting for him at the end of his driveway, her head ducked down and staring at the unkempt grass. Apparently that day had come sooner than he had expected. He shut the door behind him: time to face the music. Fukou marched down the driveway. "Kei."

Her head snapped up, her blue eyes focusing on him. And she smiled. She smiled up to her eyes at seeing him, and he felt his breath snatched from his mouth. She… she was happy to see him? But… but why?

Color rose to her cheeks, and she shyly looked away. "I was sad. I thought that you weren't going to come to school again today, and… and I guess that even though Shin and Jou are Neji are at school, and Jou's even in my class… that I would miss you. So I'm glad that you're coming to school today, Fuu-sama."

Wolfsbane barked, and Kei poured her attention out on the husky, throwing her small arms around the dog's neck and admitting that she had missed Wolfsbane too. Fuu was a little upset that she was back to being so formal with him, but he was touched that she had missed him. Still… something was off. She was hugging Wolfsbane, and… oh yes. She hadn't hit him for calling her…

A second later the side of his head hurt from where she had smacked him. Fukou let out a sigh that sounded a little forlorn… not that he'd ever admit that though. They were walking to school together, she was hitting him for being informal with him, she was being formal with him… the only thing bringing the situation down was the cookies tucked into the belt from which Fukou carried his books. Those would be disposed of as quickly and as effectively as possible.

Amy always made cookies for Fuu after she and her husband had fought. She thought that the cookies made Fukou feel special, like someone cared for him. It was nothing but a delusion to make her feel better, to convince herself that Fukou would never really believe it when his father yelled at her that she was a whore, or that Fukou was a plague on his life. But the truth was, Fukou did hear his father, and slowly, he was starting to believe his father.

The cookies that Fukou had once treasured, were now bitter in his mouth. He refused to eat them.

When he got to school, he grabbed Jou's collar and dragged the boy off to a more private area of the school yard, shoving the cookies into his hands. Jou was surprised, and he rubbed a sore neck. Then he realized what he held, and he looked up sharply at Fukou. Only Jou was allowed looking at Fukou with such concern in his eyes. It was far enough away from pity that Fukou still held Jou close, but Fuu didn't want compassion, not even from his best friend. What would compassion do? It was pointless.

"Again?" The taller boy nodded, and Jou frowned. He was young, but the red headed boy knew the difference between right and wrong and more than anything, he wanted his friend and sometimes enemy out of that house. "Fuu…"

"I don't want to hear it!" Fukou snapped.

The two friends were silent for a moment. Jou searched for something to make the situation lighter. He found the perfect topic as he looked at Fukou with hope in his green eyes. "Hey, Fuu, did you study at all last night for the test we have today?"

Fukou received a detention for how loudly he swore.

* * *

Kei's mother frowned, clearly disapproving when Kei arrived home late. It deepened when Kei explained that she either could have been late or she could have walked home by herself, as Fukou had gotten another detention. She put down the mug she had been drying, hands on her hips. "That boy got another detention? Who has he beaten up now?"

"Nobody, Mother," Kei said politely, setting her bag on the kitchen table and washing her hands. She talked to her mother as she set about making herself a peanut butter sandwich. "He just swore, and just once, but it was very loud. He realized that he had forgotten to study for a test today, and he thinks he failed it. His parents are going to be very mad at him, and Jou probably got a better mark than he did, and those two are _very_ competitive with each other."

Sora's expression didn't change. It was clear that her opinion of Fuu had deteriorated since she had first met him. After hearing about all the scraps he had gotten into at school, and thinking back to all the times Kei had come home crying because he had teased her, or all the bruises she had when she came back from martial arts class, Sora was beginning to have a lot of doubts about whether or not Fuu was a good influence on Kei. She was already regretting that she ever asked him to walk with Kei back and forth to school.

Seeing her mother's visage, Kei rolled her eyes and finished her sandwich. "Mom, sometimes…"

"Why did he forget to study?" Mrs. Konseki asked, turning away from her daughter and continuing to tidy the kitchen. She sounded indifferent, and Kei was nervous. She knew that tone all too well. "Was it martial arts that got in the way?"

"Fuu-sama didn't go to karate last night, Mother," Kei replied. She sat down at the table and took a big bite of her sandwich. The way the peanut butter stuck to the roof of her mouth helped to give her time to think of an excuse. She didn't think that Fuu would appreciate anyone knowing the things his parents said to each other. Just because she knew it was wrong, it didn't mean that she had to go embarrassing Fukou by telling everyone about it, right? Besides, it was just fighting. Her parents fought too, even if her dad didn't use the same language that Fuu's did.

"He wasn't feeling very well. He spent all night by the toilet in the washroom."

Appalled, Sora looked a little green. "Kei! You're a lady! Don't be so grotesque!" Her eyes narrowed, and Kei knew what her mother was thinking. 'It's that boy's fault that my little girl has learned such uncouth manners. He's a bad influence on her. Where did we go wrong in raising our daughter to have her been deterred by such a vagabond? I'm going to have to talk to my husband about this…'

* * *

Sighing, Kei pulled out her homework, though she had finished it in the library while she was waiting for Fukou to be done his detention. A bit more studying couldn't help, surely. Besides, there was no way she could change the opinion of her parents anyway. Where else could she have gotten her own stubbornness from but them? No, Kei knew that she couldn't convince them, she just had to help Fukou to be the good person she saw inside him when he opened up to her, so that everyone could see how spectacular he was, and then everything would be okay.

Kei sat at her desk, doing her homework. She scratched her head, struggling over an English question. Kei was so involved in it that she notice the light tapping at her window until it had gotten louder. Looking up, she saw Fukou kneeling by her window, peering in and hoping she was going to allow him entry. Kei gave him a puzzled expression before she got out of her chair and opened the window.

He was slightly damp from the fog in the night air, and he shook his head, wiping his brow in an attempt to dry off. Kei grabbed the towel from the back of her door and offered it to him. He didn't even mind that it had Anne of Green Gables on it, he just smiled at relief from getting into a warm room from the chilly night air. He took a seat at her desk, the towel around his shoulders, and looked at what had been occupying Kei. He grabbed a pen and made a few corrections as she watched.

Sitting down on the bed, she wrapped her fingers together and placed them on her knees. "Fuu-sama, as pleasant as it is to see—as if I don't see you enough at school—you probably shouldn't be here." He asked why. Slowly, anxiously, she answered. "I made the mistake of telling Mom that you got another detention."

"You're a girl," he idly remarked, "girls talk too much." She scowled at him and he threw the corrected notebook at her. "I suppose, though, that for a girl you don't talk that much. You're a lot like a boy, Konseki."

"Konseki-_san_." His remark hadn't helped the situation any. Kei scowled at him a moment longer before she looked at the homework he had corrected. Kei puzzled over it for a moment before she found the changes he had made to her translations. "I don't get it," she said, "why did you change it? What was wrong?"

"The word 'it' is a preposition. You aren't supposed to end sentences in a preposition."

He was quiet for a moment, playing with the writing utensils on her desk and looking around her room, though Kei doubted he had really taken in any of it. He spun around in the chair slowly, and he stopped when he faced the bed where she sat, fingering the pages of the homework he had corrected. Fuu tilted his head slightly, his face perplexed.

Kei wasn't really paying attention to him, was she? Her eyes were locked to the book in her hands, to the comforter on her bed, to everything but him. She had barely looked at him since the other night, when she had found out about his parents. If she had, it had just been to smile at him briefly, to try and encourage him. She had never just looked at him because she could.

Very cautiously, so much so that it hurt him when he suddenly realized that somewhere along the line Kei's opinion had started meaning something to him, he asked her: "Kei-sama… do _you_ think I'm a bad influence on you?"

"No!" Her response was immediate, and stronger than Fukou would have ever expected. Her head snapped up, and her whole body leaned forward, coming closer to him, close enough that he could feel her warmth, her breath. A cute blush rose to her cheeks. "Fuu-sama, you are a wonderful person. The detentions you get, you get them for good reasons, for protecting people from bullies, from staying late at Yasha-sensei's and helping him around the shrine and not doing your homework, and for accidents that anybody could do! People like you… they can never be bad influences."

He felt the color rise to his own cheeks, but he still stared at her as her frankness was replaced with silence. How could Fukou respond to something like that? He kind of wanted to… well, he kind of wanted to reach out and grope her.

_Why_ he would even think that, at eight years old, he didn't have a clue. 'Fuck, it's not like she even has anything to _grope_,' he thought to himself, looking at her short, stick-like figure. All he knew was that he realized Kei was getting close to him, and he wanted to push her out of the way. Why he would want to push her away by groping her, however… well, if it would work! But Fukou only marked the thought and stored it away for later. Instead, he turned back to the textbook, idly flipping through the pages.

"You haven't said anything about my family just yet."

Her answer surprised him. Her voice was plain and simple. "It's not my place to say anything, is it?"

"Of course it is. You're my friend, Konseki-san."

She blushed deeply, feeling pleased with herself. It wasn't everyday that Fukou recognized friendship verbally. His words were used sparingly, but when he did use them, they could be as heartwarming as they could be devastating. "Then… you want me to say something?"

"It would be nice to know what you were thinking," he said, sounding a little tired. Or maybe he was bored. No, it was fatigue. He had a headache. He wanted to push Kei away at the same time he wanted—needed, almost—her to be close by because her judgments were usually correct and insightful.

"Your father is a bastard!" she said heatedly, her face filled with fire and her body tense with frustration. "A fucking, lying bastard! He has no right to say any of that! Don't you dare listen to him, Fuu-sama! Don't you dare! If you ever start listening to that horrid, horrid man, I'm going to… to… I'm going to hate you even more than I do now!"

He smiled at her patiently and the anger Kei felt directed at his father became directed at Fukou himself. His smile was quite condescending. "You don't _really_ hate me, Kei."

"Yes, I do!" she snapped before she had time to think. She felt horrible when she saw the pain flash in his eyes. She reached out and patted his shoulder, getting up and leaning on it. "I will continue to deny that I might have even the slightest bit of feeling for you until… until… I don't know when."

"Between us," he said quietly, "how do you really feel about me?" They stared at each other, and Fuu snorted. "Yeah, I don't know either. At times I hate you, you make me so frustrated, and then there are others…"

"When you'd do anything to keep me safe," Kei finished for him, looking up with blue eyes filled with an understanding he couldn't grasp. She had felt that same way as well. Feeling the need for a change of topic, Kei smiled at him. "Fuu-sama, do you think we could start studying together? You could help me with English, and I can help you with mathematics. I can talk to my Mother and we can come over here. I can even bake food for you to eat! Mom was that she's been wanting me to try for a long time, helping her in the kitchen, I mean." Her smile grew to epic dimensions, your voice becoming cheerful. "You can be my test subject!"

She clapped her hands in delight and Fuu groaned. Her attempt to keep him out of the house and thus away from his father's influence was a great success, especially since he didn't even figure out her plan. And when Kei slapped him for calling her by name several minutes ago, everything was set to right again.

* * *

to be continued...


	6. Everybody Hurts

Comrade in Arms

AN: I am completely ignoring my homework… bad PoF, bad PoF!

Lily Thorne: Hm, that's a good question, and the answer is: I don't know. Hopefully I'm figure out soon. When I actually have time to write, that is.

Iggy: that's right. She _will_ be trapped in the feudal era, as in, it's in the future. Kaede-chan is only a year younger than Kei and Fuu, and she gets trapped at the age of eighteen or so, which means that Kei and Fuu will be nineteen when this story finishes. CiA and the latter part of CaU are running parallel to one another.

Isel: Yes, you have it right, although I seriously thought about making it the other way around. (_Grins.)_

Hououza: Don't worry about rushing to read DW. Take your time. Enjoy it. Writing my MS fanfics is my labor of love… and my teacher let me off the hook for the Roman/Greek thing, saying it was completely acceptable! (Whee!) And, frankly, I wish that English was a little bit more polite. English has got to be the most impolite language on the face of the planet… And (_hugs)_ take all the time you need. Something like that is important. (Duh, PoF….)

Fireblade: In all honesty, she stops eventually, because of needing to go back to the feudal era, but I wanted to give her some form of a job, make her a little more independent… and also because it means that Inuyasha takes care of the shrine and a stay at home dad, which is just plain _funny_! And it suits him a little too, don't you think?

Fantastical Queen: Nope. Don't worry. Fuu will be pretty much healthy as a teenager… maybe a little _too_ healthy, if you get my drift. And you will get the story… in whichever chapter it is when Fuu explains to Kei how he got his nickname. For all those who don't remember, Kei still doesn't know that Fuu isn't his real name.

Miroku's Girl: Oddly enough, I started writing a Rin and Sesshy story. Let's just say that thus far, it's not your average story for Rin and Sesshy. And let's just say that so far, I only have three pages written.

Siren: Heh heh. Good. Time is good. I'm going to print out yet another essay when I'm done uploading, which means no time to play FF8 today (I just bought it, and I've never played an FF game before!) because I have to go to work in two hours. I'm currently putting a whole new spin to the ending of _The Woman who Rides like a Man_, so it's a little slow going. But hopefully, in the summer….arg, I don't want to think about summer either, and me having to find another job…

Starzki: I'm probably a bad example. I see him as being too mature.

Demon: It happens. I write the way I talk, and no one ever calls me out for ending sentences in a preposition when I talk; however, no, you aren't supposed to end sentences with a preposition, nor are you—I learned recently—supposed to start them with the word 'however'. So now I need to practice getting out of the bad of that! (_Doesn't know if 'that' is a preposition or not...)_

Chad: I haven't made up my mind yet. Your suggestion makes sense, but so does the idea of her having a great ass and Miroku not being able to control herself. It could also just be he likes getting a rise out of her.

Ninalee-chan: Yes, they were, and no doubt it was hard. I never went into, just briefly mentioned it, but in one of Sango's flashbacks it talks about how Kagome was always debating with herself. She knows that Sango is dying and will become reincarnated, but she doesn't want to say anything in case she influences them. Frankly, I don't even want to get started thinking on such a complicated thought-stream. O.O My head hurts enough already from schoolwork. And yes, that was the word I was looking for, and thank you very much. (_Grins proudly.)_

Zhivago: No prom? O.o Damn. (_Changes the ending.)_ …I mentioned apple pie? And any advice you can give me would be welcome, though I don't know how much of it is useable, as I'm currently writing eighteen… and have been for the past two weeks. I hate having to write only essays and getting stressed out over school and work… oh well. Maybe I will go play some FF8 and blow something up.

Enjoy!

"Sometimes everything is wrong. Now it's time to sing along.  
When your day is night alone, (hold on, hold on)  
If you feel like letting go, (hold on)  
When you think you've had too much of this life, well hang on.

Everybody hurts. Take comfort in your friends.  
Everybody hurts. Don't throw your hand. Oh, no. Don't throw your hand.  
If you feel like you're alone, no, no, no, you are not alone."

Everybody Hurts, by REM

* * *

Chapter Five: Everybody Hurts

People walked by, two girls, both in her class. They took one look at her, sitting there on the bench by herself, and snickered between themselves. As they walked by, Kei could hear them. "Will you look at that? Sitting all by herself like that! What is she waiting for, the rain to let up or something?"

"I can't believe Fuu-kun hangs out with her! And we thought he had no taste when he started hanging out with Neji!"

"Hey," the first girl laughed, "Neji is pretty cute. If it wasn't for Kei and Shin, they could be the bishie group. Shin, maybe he'll get cute when he grows up, or if you go for the chubby little puppy cute, but Kei? She'll never be pretty. I'm _glad_ she's got her smarts. If it wasn't for them, she'd never have anything!"

When they were finally out of ear shot, Kei couldn't be more thankful. Her blue eyes followed them bitterly. 'What do you know?' she questioned them, surprised at the feeling of hatred in her heart. She wanted to snarl, she wanted to punch something, she wanted to have someone smile and tell her that everything would be okay… but she had no one. She didn't even have Fuu, and he was hardly the type of person to tell her to keep a stiff upper lip. So she told herself, and strangely, she believed herself when she said that it would all be alright.

Only a few minutes later, Fukou came out of his make–up test, the math test he had been dreading for so long. Kei sat on the bench, and he slid beside her, resting his arm on the back of the wooden bench. She looked at him eagerly. "How did it go?"

"I forgot my times tables… But I think I did okay on the long division."

Kei laughed, and punched his arm, though it was resting behind her. "Way to go, Fuu-sama! I knew you could do it! And don't worry, you'll get the times tables soon. It's just memorization, just like me and my English vocabulary!"

He grinned, again it was one of those rare real smiles, and his arm fell from the back of the bench, falling on her shoulders. She was pushed a little closer to him by the weight. He smiled down at her, his black hair brushing hers and his green eyes dancing from happiness. Before this, Fuu had been terrified that he was going to have to tell his dad that he hadn't done well in math, but thanks to Kei and her teaching, he knew he had done well! "Konseki-san…"

Her face brightened, and her mouth dropped open a little. "There, you see, you can be polite." She grinned up at him, though her back was starting to hurt a little from the odd position. "You need to smile more, Fuu-sama. I think you look good when you smile."

Much to her surprise, he blushed. Fukou lifted his arm from her body and stood up, stretching. He stared at the window, his face returning to "normal" when he saw that the rain was striking the window with such force and sheer numbers that it was awash with water. He grumbled about having to walk home, and then he was surprised when an umbrella was pressed into his hand.

He looked down and found that it was Kei's. She was climbing into her yellow rain jacket, and Fukou still couldn't get over how odd she looked with her school outfit and big yellow rain boots. She put her school shoes into her knapsack, talking all the while. "You can go ahead and use my umbrella, as long as you don't mind the ducks on it. I don't want you to get sick and get a cold, Fuu-sama."

He tried to give her back the umbrella, but she refused. It wasn't that Fukou didn't want to use it, or that he didn't give a crap whether it had yellow ducks or purple cats, he just didn't think it was right for him to be using an umbrella and for Kei to have none. They walked in silence to the front doors, Kei's yellow rain gear squeaking with each step, but as they stood outside the school, the sound was lost in the rainfall.

Both of them looked around, somehow the idea of the school being washed away not so funny any more. The raindrops were falling so heavily that they had pulled leaves from the trees and beaten flowers and grass into the ground. Puddles had sprung up everywhere, brown from the mud. The sky was nearly black, but under the streetlights the raindrops seemed to mist into something softer, like tender spring rains. The lights were lying. It was the biggest storm either of them had ever seen.

"What a crappy day for our last day of school," Kei dryly remarked.

"But it _is_ our last day of school," Fuu purred thoughtfully. He held tight to the open umbrella and then jumped into the nearest puddle, covering himself with mud. He sighed contentedly and then looked at Kei, who was covering her smile with her tiny hand. "Come on, Kei! You have no idea how much fun it is to do this and not have to worry about detentions!"

Her hand fell, and she was not smiling. Quite calmly, she walked over to the rain puddle, and jumped in with all her might, splashing Fukou all the way up to his face. She giggled hysterically at his expression, but to her surprise, he laughed back.

They played together half the way home, laughing into puddles and trying to out splash each other. For the first time in a long time, both of them were playing, like normal children. The laughter they shared began to flow between them easier; they didn't care at the water sloshing around in their shoes, or at the way their hair plastered to their face. They were just being normal children, for the first time either of them remembered.

The other half of the way home, they were too tired to play anymore. Fukou was looking forward to going home and taking a nap. He held the umbrella, and Kei leaned on him as he held the umbrella over them, a tiny smile on her face. Both of them knew that there was something familiar about the scenario, of walking together under an umbrella, but they were so tired that for once they simply ignored the feeling of deja-vous.

He walked her up to her door and then went home himself, leaning the umbrella he had forgotten to give her back against his bed, where he fell asleep looking at it.

* * *

For Kei, however, things did not go so well. Because they had spent an hour playing in the rain, she had been late in getting home, and her mother had been worrying. Her father too was there, home early from work because of the dangerous driving conditions, and they rushed to the door when they heard it open. Kei hadn't even been able to take off her boots or say a greeting before their parents were gasping at her state. 

Mud speckled her face and her clothes. She was leaving a puddle on the floor just by standing in the doorway. Her hair was tangled and plastered to her head from the rain, her clothes sticking to her body wherever possible. She looked like she had been dragged all the way home, and yet she was grinning like a hooligan.

"Hi!" she said cheerfully, seeing her parents.

Her mother began first. "Kei… what happened?"

She looked down at herself, innocently confused. She hadn't realized she was so late, which was the problem when one had fun. Nor did she understand why her mother was shocked that she was covered in mud and water. The fact that it was raining explained the water, and why should she care about the school uniform? It wasn't like she needed to wear it anytime soon.

With a sigh, her father rubbed his forehead. He didn't need this right now. He placed a calming hand on his wife's shoulder to silence her. The last thing they needed was to deal with Kei getting yelled at for being a child. As proper as they were raising Kei to be, no amount of talk regarding honor or what was proper would be able to make Kei be adult all the time. Even adults needed to behave like children every once in a while.

"Kei," he said softly, "please go upstairs and dry off and change."

"Yes, sir."

* * *

Fifteen minutes later Kei had snuggled into the warmest, most comforting clothes she had. She had on her Makona slippers, her fluffiest pair of socks, her pajama bottoms, an old flannel shirt that had been her dad's—he had accidentally shrunk it—and a blanket wrapped around her shoulders. Her hair was wrapped up in a towel, not because of the rain, but because she had also taken a hot shower to warm up and get the dirt off of her skin. Kei blew into her cup of hot chocolate, poking her marshmallows that floated into the cup and giggling at their texture. 

Fai reached beside him and took his wife's hand, trying to find his voice. He thought the topic should be left until later, but they had thought that they should give Kei as much time as she could to prepare. He coughed, and she looked up from her cocoa. "Kei," Fai said gently, "as you know, I've been working very hard at my new job. I'm doing it because I want to be able to give you and your mother a good future, so that we can take family trips, and so that you can have a good education, the kind a smart girl like you should be able to get."

"I know, Daddy."

Why did his daughter have to be so cute? It just made everything harder. "Kei, a new branch has opened up, in another district. They want me to head the new office. It will mean I can make my own hours, and I can be here when you come home from school, so your mother can find a job again as well. You know how long she's wanted to go back to working, Kei. The only thing is, because it's in another district, we'd have to move."

The cup slipped from her hands suddenly. Kei stared at the liquid a second, and at the pieces of cup on the floor. She bolted up from her chair, hurrying to get the paper napkins, and her parents picked up the glass. As they cleaned up the small mess, Kei looked up at her dad, fixing the towel around her head. "But we just moved! And you said _district_, didn't you? That means I wouldn't be able to see my friends anymore, I wouldn't be able to go to school with them! And I wouldn't be near a shrine, or be able to go to Yasha-sensei's classes!"

"But," Sora said, trying to comfort her, "you'll have a whole new set of friends to make. And we can find a new place for you to learn martial arts…"

"I don't want new friends! I don't want a new school, and I don't want a new dojo! I like it _here_!" Kei was getting louder now, and more frustrated. Didn't they understand? She liked things the way they were, she liked the niche she had carved for herself. Her parents had moved her once, and now she had found this life that was getting better day by day, where she was learning things and exercising herself and actually starting to behave like a little girl again and they wanted to take that away from her!

Fai reached out to comfort his daughter, seeing that she was about to start crying. Kei was too fast for him, and she dodged his grasp. Leaving her parents holding shards of a broken mug, she hurried from the room as fast as she could, grabbing her rain jacket and slamming the door behind her.

* * *

When Kei didn't come back immediately, turning back as most children do when they realize that the world was too big for them to handle, her parents began to get worried. Despite the water that was now turning the roadways into broad, black rivers, Fai and Sora climbed into their car and began the hunt for their daughter. 

After an hour and a half of searching, Sora and Fai had become desperate. Parking the car in the drive way, Sora ran over to the house next door, the one place they hadn't yet looked. Amy answered the door, inviting the parents in when she saw they were wet and pale with worry. Fukou stood at the bottom of the stairs, and she told him to bring down some towels so they could dry off. He raced back up the stairs as Sora spoke.

"Don't worry, Amy. We're not going to be here long. I was just worrying if you or your son had seen Kei." Fukou stood at the top of the stairs, listening to Kei's parents. "We told Kei that Fai got a new job and that we would have to move…"

His eyes widened. Kei was going to leave him? The towels dropped silently to the carpet at his feet. Kei was going to leave him? He felt numb, imagining what life would be like without her and hating what he thought of. There would be no one to share his lunch with him, no one who made him smile, no one to walk to school beside him, to jump in puddles with him, to spar with him, to fight beside him… he'd never realized that whenever he turned around, Kei seemed to be there, sharing life with him until he realized that she was going to be leaving him.

Then the numbness snapped, and he felt his jaw tighten, his lip curl up into a snarl. The numbness snuck into his mind. 'Kei is going to leave me. That bitch is going to leave me!'

"We looked everywhere: the school, the playground, Jou's house, Shin's house…"

'She's missing?' Fukou reacted immediately. He went back into his room and he grabbed the umbrella lying beside his bed. He scampered down the stairs as his mother led Sora and Fai into the kitchen for a relaxing pot of tea. He had hoped to get out of the house before he was spotted, but it didn't work out. His mother turned around to see him. He stared up at her, his green eyes fixing with hers and showing a determination beyond his years. Fuu held the umbrella tightly. "I'm going to go out looking for her."

"Are you crazy, boy?" Fai demanded with a rising voice.

He almost answered yes. Instead, he pointed outside, slipping his feet into his running shoes. "My _friend_ is out somewhere in there, and no one can find her but me. Even if you two did know where to look, she would never go with you, because you two are the people who are taking her away from everything! Kei is _mine_, do you understand? She's never going to be taken away from me!"

Fukou didn't know where those words had come from. He'd never been so possessive over anybody before, nobody but Kei. No one made a move to stop him, they were all too shocked at his words, and he turned and left, leaving them speechless. It wasn't really the words he had said, or how he said them, more like the feeling they still heard reverberating in the air, and the fact that even the least perceptive of them had felt his chi rising in the hallway.

* * *

He ran all the way. The umbrella clutched tightly in his hand, Wolfsbane at his side, they ran all the way to the woods that surrounded the shrine. It didn't matter if her parents had already looked around the shrine, they wouldn't have found her. Maybe if Inuyasha and Kagome had been home, they could have asked them and gotten directions to the clubhouse, but they were off to what they called the cottage. 

The rainwater splashed his jeans all the way up to his thighs as he ran. The water in the streets had risen to five inches in height wince Fai and Sora had set out into the car. The wind whipped the rain into his face, and it was as black as night even though it was only the late afternoon. When he got to the shrine, he found the water coursing down the steep stairs turned it into a miniature waterfall. Rather than fight the water, he scrambled up the muddy grass beside it, hoping Kagome would understand why he was abusing her lawn. Wolfsbane barked encouragement from the top of the hill, and when he was up, they continued.

The clubhouse was built in the woods around the shrine, and a few years old, but in good shape. The gang used it for when they wanted to escape from Fuu's house, and Fuu used it when his parents were so loud that the roof wasn't enough of a sanctuary. The house had been built by Kagome and Souta when they had been younger, and Inuyasha had fixed it for his daughter so she had a place to run off to. Fukou was certain he would find Kei there because that's where he would be hiding in her situation.

Wait, why was she hiding again?

His question was interrupted when he saw that Kei wasn't in the trees. She was emerging from the outskirts of the Higurashi shrine. Kei was soaked even worse than she had been before. Her nose was pink and she kept sniffling, rubbing her arms around her shoulders. Her slippers were so water laden and heavy that she had to shuffle to move. Her hair was plastered down again. When she heard him approach, she looked up at him, simply staring, her blue eyes sad and a little hollow.

Looking at her, remembering how she was going to leave him, he suddenly felt hate for her. He hated how she always had to be so cute and adult at the same time. He hated that he was mad at her but he felt bad for her when he saw her cute pajama bottoms and the way she shivered with cold. He hated how she looked so scared of him, yet so glad to see him. He hated everything about her…

Quickly, he strode across the space between them, and grabbed her hand, dragging her out of the rain to the Goshiboku. The Goshinboku managing to shelter them from the rain. It had seen storms much worse than this one. Under the shelter of the large tree, he grabbed Kei's arms and took a deep breath of air to yell at her… and found he couldn't. Now that he was closer to her, he saw that the drops of liquid on her face were not all raindrops. Some of them were tears. Her eyes were red from crying, her lips swollen from sobbing. All thoughts of accusing her of leaving him left his mind, and Kei felt like crying.

She was about to say something, but he beat her to speaking first. His voice was curious, but dry. He blinked, is vision slightly blurred from the raindrops thattraileddown his face from his wet hair. "You… you don't want to go?"

Her cheeks slowly matched her nose and her body sank into a defensive posture, her hands coming up to her chest as she yelled. "Of course I don't want to go! It's not fair that my parents can do this to me! It's not fair that parents can tell their children to go and make friends, as if that's an easy task, and then tell them that you're going to move! I don't want to leave you! I like it here!" She shifted a little closer to the Goshinboku, as if that could defend her from her parents' decree.

Fuu suddenly felt horrible. He continued staring at her, wondering how he ever could have thought that she would willingly leave him. Still, he couldn't let go of his anger entirely. He suddenly jumped on her, pressing themselves together andtelling her fiercely. "You're not allowed to leave me, Kei! Promise me, promise me that you will never, ever leave me!"

Kei's voice shook, and she didn't hold him back. She was too cold; she just nestled in closer to his warm body. Feeling left out, Wolfsbane's whine was lost in the sounds of the steady downpour hitting the canopy of the Goshinboku. There was a fleeting moment where she felt like she had done this before, but then it ebbed away, leaving her feel safe and relaxed. Her fingers slowly released from her arms and she hugged him back. Kei finally answered him. "O…Okay, Fuu-sama. I promise you that I won't leave you."

They don't know how long they stood like that, comforting each other and feeling their connection grow and deepen as they watched the puddles forming on the ground. The rain didn't let up, flashes of lightning beginning to lighten the sky in intervals, the thunder so loud that both of them jumped when they first heard it. Kei's teeth began to chatter soon. She had been out for hours in the rain, and while the air wasn't cold, the rain that landed on her was making it harder for her to stay warm, stealing her heat to evaporate and only be replaced by their brethren.

When he noticed that her fingers were shaking, her teeth chattering, Fuu suggested that they leave. Kei nodded, but Fuu didn't budge, not at first. He felt something tugging at him from the tree, something strong and powerful just underneath the surface of the bark, that drew him and repelled him at the same time. Slowly, he pulled himself away from that longing, familiar feeling and they walked away.

The wind again ripped at them. Fuu's arms stayed around Kei, trying to protect her. She stumbled as she walked, and he led her on, Wolfsbane barking joyous encouragement. She, at least, didn't care what the weather was like. They managed to make it to the bottom of the stairs before the lightning struck. The tree behind them crashed, nearly hitting them, and Fuu swore. Why did it feel like this storm was just out to get at _them_?

He didn't notice the bleeding, not until they had rounded the edge of the shrine. That tree had gotten him. Scratches had appeared on his face, his shoulder, his legs and his hand. The sound of the blood hitting the ground was identical to the sound of the raindrops.

"Fuu-sama?" she asked sweetly, worried when she saw how pale he was. Seeing the blood run with the water from his hand, she could do nothing for it. She didn't even have a bandaid. Her eyes slipped down and she saw the umbrella he was holding.

He noticed her gaze. Fuu sniffled loudly, his nose turning just as pink. "I guess that with this wind, it wouldn't do much to use it now, would it?"

Their parents saw them coming as dark shapes in the rain. All four of them ran forward to greet them, ushering them inside Fukou's house. The towels he had dropped on the ground were recovered and wrapped around them. They made up some cocoa, and gave it to them to hold in their trembling hands. They sat side by side together on the floor, sniffling, and huddled together under a pile of blankets, while Wolfsbane was confined to the hallway to avoid the wet-dog smell.

After they were feeling better, the Konseki family went home, and Fukou took a long, hot bath. He got changed into fresh pajamas, threw some more blankets on his bed, and crawled in, desiring nothing more than to sleep for a week. Kei would be there when he woke up, so it would all be okay. But the fighting from downstairs kept his eyes from closing, and despite the still pouring rain, Fuu and his blanket went out and sat on the porch, waiting for both storms to pass.

* * *

"Do you think we should call a doctor?" Mrs. Konseki asked. 

"I think Kei will be fine. She's wrapped up all warm like a bug in a rug, we gave her a decongestant, and she's young. Her body is strong; why else could she have been out there for an hour and a half?" her husband replied, hugging his wife as they watched the news on the television screen.

Sora was silent, and after awhile, Fai kissed his wife's hair, smiling the same way at her as Kei smiled at Fukou when he was trying to cheer him up. "You know, what Fuu did today really surprised me. It made me think that they must know each other very well, Sora, for him to know where she was hiding when her own parents didn't. Fuu is completely reckless, and aggressive, and smart, and just the kind of friend our little girl needs. Because she is a little girl, Sora. She needs someone to make her forget… whatever it is that makes her so much more mature than other kids her age, the same thing that makes Fuu so adult for his age. Just because a kid gets into trouble a lot at school doesn't make him a bad kid, Sora. Remember all the stories my mom told you about me?"

"I remember…" She continued watching the weather report, and then she looked up at her husband. In all honesty, Sora didn't really want to move either, but if this meant that her husband would be able to spend more time at home and work as he had always wanted, and she could start having something to occupy her days instead of just soap operas, then she would more than gladly encourage him. "Does this mean that you are changing your mind? That we won't move?"

His answer was slow. "I… don't know."

* * *

Unbeknownst to Kei, as she slept through feverish dreams for the second time in her life, her parents planned the move. She was still sick in bed, half dazed, when her father came in and lifted her into the car in her favorite blanket, leaving her mother and the movers to pack up her bedroom. Kei was still slightly out of it, but she remembered seeing the bedroom light on in Fukou's bedroom, and she wondered why he hadn't come to visit her. 

"I'm sorry, Fuu," she said, pressing her hand against the glass before her father started the car. She had promised him that she would never leave him, and after only a week she was breaking it. She felt the tears try to emerge, but she pushed them back. She wouldn't cry. She refused to cry just because she was leaving.

"I'll be back!" she whispered fiercely, as they car backed out of the driveway, and drove away from everything Kei had come to love.

* * *

Fukou was lying sick in bed, his fever still unbroken. His sickness was even worse than Kei's. She had spent an hour and a half in the rain, he had spent twice that. Wolfsbane was always had his side, whining every time he shifted in bed or moaned through the fever. 

He moaned a lot, the husky noticed, sighing and laying her furry nose against Fuu's chest. He clutched at his right hand, whimpering, sometimes with fear or with pain. He called out the names of people she didn't recognize, and was unresponsive most of the time. Wolfsbane worried about him. They all did.

His mother came in at one point, brushing his hair and spoon feeding him some soap. Her presence eased his dreams enough for him to actually wake up, his sweat soaked body shivering under many blankets.

"Kei moved today," she said simply, unable to hide her own feelings about having a good friend like Sora leave her life.

He waited until she left, pulling the blankets over his head. When his mother had gone, he reached under his bed and grabbed the yellow umbrella. Fukou pulled it under the blankets with him, and held it tightly.

"…Kei…"


	7. Big Yellow Taxi

Comrade in Arms

AN: I just found a typo in the last chapter… it should be chapter six (les duh, to me!) So this is chapter seven…. (God, I'm slow in the morning!)

Aamalie: Yeah… I don't know why I did that. I think it was just to avoid them becoming too close at too young of an age. If you really want to know why I did it, ask her. (_points__ to her muse_)

Siren: I was seriously debating doing Miroku as a girl and Kei as a boy… but I thought that it would be a little bit too weird, so I kept them with their original sexes. Personally, I preferred the idea of Miroku getting reincarnated as a dolphin. It just… makes so much sense!

Fireblade: Hm…. That makes sense…. But not in this story. (_smiles_). Being a stay-at-home dad, a hero in the Sengoku Jidai, a martial arts instructor, and taking care of the shrine is enough for poor Inuyasha to do.

Hououza: After all this work we have to do (house work, school work, and work work) are you in the same boat as me where you're looking at the possible free time in summer and wondering what you'll do with it?

Lily: That's just how I end the first part… the part where we get to see them as little kids. Don't worry. Now we can get them into more of the teenage setting so many people have been waiting to see.

Asylum100: Wait… it is a pronoun… and across is a prep…o…. O.o (_insane Psycho music plays_) I'm going to find whoever said that you shouldn't end sentences with an 'it' and cause them severe physical pain! Make me change all of my sentences, will you…. (_grr__…_) Thanks for the heads up! (_wines__… oy vey… I need someone to teach me grammar…_)

Angelswarmth: I thought it was time Miroku got an animal-buddy.

Ninalee-chan: I'm a sucker for episode 161, I really am. I love it. (_sighs_) And I agree. I love Kei's character. She's just so… spirited and polite all at the same time. In all honesty, I have a lot more fun writing Kei than Fuu. And they talk more about how Kei looks when she was little in this chapter, because I know that I never really explained how Kei and Fukou looked "disagreeable". And of course they are doing better than adult Miroku and Sango… because in some way, they are already adult Miroku and Sango. The time-thing will become clear when Kaede-chan disappears, don't worry.

Iggy: Don't worry, I still love you. And well… I need a plot first for your proposition. I have two fics sitting in the back burner, but only one is MS, and it's AU.

Anywhose, the posting parade for this weekend continues with CiA chapter 7. I think, in all honesty, this is turning into, like, an early Easter treat (I am at work or in school every day during Easter except for the ones which are holidays, so something tells me I won't be having any time to post, and next weekend is the play, so no posting there either) and a special treat to anyone getting bogged down by exams and essays like me. (I try on a daily basis no to be squished by my textbooks.)

Enjoy!

"On and on you seem to go,

But you don't know what you've got till it's gone.

They paved paradise,

And put up a parking lot."

Big Yellow Taxi, Counting Crows (among others)

* * *

Chapter Seven: Big Yellow Taxi

During the time of feverish dreams, the parents stayed close by to their children, for the most part. Mr. Aisowotsukasu still went to work every morning, and when he got home, he popped in once to check on Fukou and then he went to bed. Mr. Konseki also went to work, but when he came back home, he always went and stayed with his daughter for an hour or two, often feeding Kei her soup.

Had the two parents ever talked during this time, they would have found out that the other child was also ill, and they would have recognized some of the names, the strange places and things that their children were talking about.

Both of them now and again shuddered the name 'Naraku' with such fierce hatred that when Amy had first heard it, her face had paled and she was already reaching towards the phone in Fuu's room, ready to calm somebody, _anybody_, for help. Sora was still disheartened to hear Kei cry over a boy named 'Kohaku', a boy that she called a brother, and hoped she would not have to tell Kei once again that she had no brother. She still had not recovered from the last time she had told Kei she was an only child. Kei had looked so devastated…

Yet, in moments when they were swimming up from the twisted nightmares that left their beds in tatters and their mouths hoarse, they stared at something far away, and smiled. In these times, nothing their parents could do could wake them from their dreams. They simply lay still in bed, smiling and often crying, heartbreakingly happy.

At least when they were screaming, their parents could wake them. Sometimes, they even woke themselves. Kei, at one point, woke up screaming, holding her knees to her chest and rocking back and forth. She had run out of tears long ago. Her father rushed in, and he held her, disturbed by the weight she had lost from not being able to keep down her food, or from not being able to eat.

"Kei! Kei, what's wrong?"

She shivered, clinging to her father. She could still feel the warmth of the body she had held in her arms as she had dreamt, still smell him and the blood in the air, still remember the screams of a young man and an older one as everything went to hell, even though all names had escaped from her mind. "I was holding him… he was important to me, and I finally had him back," she sobbed, "and then…"

She couldn't continue as she remembered watching his flesh burst open, monstrous shapes pouring out of his back, taking him over. Cruel tentacles had toppled everything, absorbed everything it could, and the smell in the air was like the acidic stench of vomit.

Kei pushed her father away and ran to the washroom, where she was ill once before succumbing to weary sleep once more.

To Fukou, he always felt as if there was something, something far away that he was trying to remember, something that he remembered only in the deepest parts of his memory when all his boundaries had been boiled down by fever, but he could not remember them. When he was lucid, he could remember vague things he had seen, bits and pieces of nightmares or fantasies from earlier in his sicknesses, but never anything hard.

He was scared to open that door in his mind, knowing there were monsters in his psyche he wasn't ready to deal with yet.

He stood at one such door as he lay in bed, shaking with fever, his body twitching as the nightmares attacked his mind. He smelled alcohol faintly in the air. He smelled his own tears. And the wind. The fierce wind. He was afraid of that wind, terrified of it, terrified of the way that he brushed his clothes, of the way it pulled his hair, at the way it howled around the little house.

He asked something, but he didn't know what it was, and whatever answer he received, it terrified him more than the wind. He tried to run away, as if by being there he could prevent something horrible from happening. But his legs wouldn't move. He looked down at realized that arms were keeping him from moving anywhere, that he was a young, helpless boy, and then he heard what name he was repeating over and over again.

'Father! Father!'

Fukou sat up, gasping for air, his chest heaving as he tried to lock those memories back up. 'Memories?' he wondered. 'When had they become memories? It was a nightmare. It was just a nightmare! There's no way that that was a memory… But reincarnation isn't that farfetched of an idea.'

In fact, it made a lot of sense. He curled back up in bed, subconsciously winding his hands in the sheets and closing his fists tightly, subconsciously sheltering them against his heart. 'Maybe I was a great warrior in the past. Maybe I went around saving lots of beautiful women. Maybe I even had a family…. Yes, of course I had a family. I was crying out for my father, wasn't I? In that case, I envy my old self. Nothing this bastard could do would ever make me cry over his death.

'Death. Yes, that's why I was crying.' Fukou was ashamed when he heard himself sniffle. He didn't know why, but the idea of a father in a past lifetime dying made him want to start crying, and it felt _good_. 'I was crying because my father was dying. I would never see him again…

'That _bastard_! That weak, stupid, perverted _bastard_!' He pound his hand into his pillow… a lot. Every strike, he felt some of the sudden, violent anger he felt release further, the tears slip faster down his cheeks. Fukou lost himself in that hatred, riding it for all it was worth, and feeling the hatred he had felt then and the hatred he felt now for his father join into something explosive, something plagued with hatred that he needed to get of immediately lest it poison his mind further.

'_Why_? Why did he have to do that to me? I was so _young_! Fathers! They screw everything up! He left me, left me alone and _burdened_ me, made me so much older than I was and why? Because he gave up and stopped fighting it? Because Mom's death hurt him too much and he lost power? _Why_? It's not fair! It's not fair! God… god must hate me… he gives me bad fathers because I…_I_…'

But that was the thought that he wasn't allowed to finish. He clutched his pillow so tightly his nails drew scratches in the fabric. "I'm never going to fall in love," he vehemently mumbled under his breath.

* * *

Finally, his fever broke, and he was able to sit out of bed. The first thing he did was sneak past the watchful eyes of his mother downstairs to the washroom, and he took the longest shower he had ever taken before. He washed his hair twice, and even scrubbed behind his ears.

The hot air filled the washroom, and he wiped off the mirror so he could see his face to brush his teeth. Fukou brushed them so hard that his gums began to bleed. But he didn't care. Nor did he care that his skin was almost raw from how he had scrubbed himself or from the hot water. He felt caked with sweat, and Fukou _needed_ to be clean, and warm.

'I'm never going to get that sick again!' he swore to himself.

Sneaking past his mother again—though Amy knew that her son was up when she heard the shower turn on—he quickly got dressed. Not only did he feel like doing something after having stayed in bed so long, he was a child, and he wanted to enjoy his summer vacation for as long as he could. He dressed as quickly as he could, and he raced downstairs.

Hearing his feet thundering down the steps, Wolfsbane barked, her tail wagging back and forth. She danced happily in the hallway, unable to quiet now that she saw that Fukou was up. Wolfsbane had been bored to death without Kei and Fukou around. He knelt down in front of her, his arms outstretched, and she rushed at him. Licking his face happily, she actually bowled him over, pinning him on the ground as he giggled gleefully and tried to avoid her wet tongue and bad breath.

"I just had a shower!" he laughed. "I don't need another one, Wolfsbane! Come on!" The giggled pierced his speech as he began to win the fight against the husky. "You're going to make me smell like doggy breath!" The husky barked loudly, as if protesting that humans were the ones with the bad breath.

Amy stood at the kitchen, her green eyes sad. She watched her son, happy that he was awake and laughing again, but at the same time the time that he had spent in bed had been draining on her both physically and mentally. She had been worried sick about her son, with no one to talk to, no one to tell her that it would be alright. There hadn't even been anybody to help her take care of him. Her husband certainly hadn't done anything to help.

"Hi Mom!" Fukou jumped up, and Amy couldn't recall the last time she had seen her son look so vibrant, so healthy… or so happy. The age that had seemed to be creeping up on Fukou had vanished. His green eyes were bright and shinning, his smile so broad it made her smile back in return, and even the depressing dark colors of his clothes could not hide the color he was beginning to sport.

It didn't take a genius to figure out what it was that had caused her son to slowly turn from a sour boy to this glowing child playing with his dog. That was why it hurt her so much when she realized that she might need to remind her son that Kei had moved away. Kei had been there for him to lean on, there to tease and to have someone who would always fight back when he needed to cut loose. They had been friends, good friends, and now that she was gone, all that negative energy she had allowed him to expel was going to become bottled up inside of him again, slowly poisoning his mind.

How long would it take for that sour expression of his to reappear? How long would it take for his eyes to close up and become harsh again? How long until he clamed up at the dinner table, until her son began to look with her those eyes she had seen in her nightmares, the eyes that said he hated her because he didn't have someone like Kei in his life? He needed someone who could calm him as well as excite him, someone who could be quiet and listen and who could also cheer him up when she knew what to say. He needed someone who could hold her own against him whether it be against his quick tongue or against his physical temper.

Kei had been able to do that, and Amy was certain that she was the only one who would be able to do that. How many young girls were like Kei out there? Jou was a good friend, someone that Fukou enjoyed to compete against, as well as someone he respected, though he dared not admit that. But he needed a female influence in his group of friends. He needed a strong woman to prove to him all the things his father had told him were blatant lies, but he still needed that streak of maternal instinct that would make her willing to hold him, and comfort him physically.

Amy sighed, nearly carried away by her thoughts. She sat down on one of the chairs, beckoning her son to her. "Fuu, while you were asleep, Kei moved away."

It was a little concerning to see the surprise on his face. After seeing it, Amy began to think that maybe she had liked it better when Fuu hadn't shown many emotions, before he had started to melt. She had gotten used to seeing that icy face every morning, gotten used to hearing his stern voice say that everything would be okay when he caught her crying, as if she could hear the man he would someday become in his voice. The shock was something new, and that was why it scared her.

"She wouldn't!" he protested. "She promised me that she would leave me!"

Amy was pained to see the happiness slowly slide away from Fuu, the boy he was before Kei emerging in front of her eyes. "Honey, she didn't have a choice. He parents made the decision for her…"

"I don't care!" he snapped. With his pointed chin and the ebony hair that hid his eyes, that practiced glare, Amy felt as if she was talking to her husband rather than to her son. Why did he have to get his temper? No, temper wasn't hereditary. Fukou had been taught that it was okay to yell, though both mother and son knew that deep down in Fukou's mind he hated it as much as she did. "She promised me she would never leave me! She should have kept her promise!"

He looked down at the ground, his body stiff. Wolfsbane butted her head comfortingly against his fists. He hadn't felt such anger since that night when he had punched his pillow furiously, that night when he had suddenly thrown up in bed when the pillow began to take on shapes and faces of people he didn't know, people he hated, and worse, some he did know.

The fact that he felt that blazing temper turn back on Kei scared him a little, but the fear was pushed away. 'She deserves it! That… that little bitch! She promised me that she would never leave me! She lied to me! She _lied_ to me! That whore! That lying harlot! She _lied_!'

His voice was pathetically soft. He looked back up at his mother, who was disheartened to see that her son had taken exactly twenty-five seconds to set up all his old shields, to revert back to the defensive, aggressive boy he was before he had made friends with Kei. "Did she even come to say good bye?"

"Honey," Amy said softly. She reached out to brush his hair, but he backed away. The red-headed woman sighed. "No, she didn't come say goodbye. She was too sick. She couldn't get out of bed to come and say goodbye to you."

His features sharpened further. "Good!" Fukou snapped. "I hate her! She did the right thing moving away from me! I absolutely hate Kei!"

Fuu stomped back upstairs and slammed the door.

* * *

Somewhere within the following years, Fuu's anger ebbed away, but the grudge still remained. She had promised she would never leave him, and she had broken that promise. Fuu had never felt so unwanted in his life. He had never felt so rejected.

* * *

Kei, on the other hand, had just a difficult time adjusting to her new life. She was right beside the school, so she walked by herself everyday. Even years later she still woke up expecting to hear Fuu's voice yelling at her that she would be late. She didn't make friends; she didn't _want_ any new friends. She wanted her old friends back, but if she had wanted new companions, she wouldn't have been able to find them.

People took one look at those blue-grey eyes, at the frown she wore and the lost look in her eyes, and they pitied her. Then they saw her mind at work, watching her name dominate first place in every single one of her classes, and they hated her. 'She spends all her time moping around,' they said, 'so how does she get work done? She acts like such a drama queen! And she's so disagreeable looking!'

'Disagreeable,' Kei repeated when she heard them, 'what makes someone disagreeable looking?'

When Kei was finally a senior, she joined the senior kendo club, and all the other martial arts clubs she could find. Kei had been working furiously hard on making her body acceptable to her. She stretched and worked out everyday, and slowly her body became as limber and as hard as she had always wanted. It was yet another way in which she alienated herself from people: they though she was a freak when girls saw her changing in class and realized that the hourglass figure she had was because she was so well-toned there wasn't room for fat.

The way she fought was another way she alienated herself further. She wasn't the best fighter. Many of the boys on the team could beat her at grappling or with a sword, but she was quicker than they were, and more graceful when she did it. Her coach always told her that she needed to become more passionate, becoming more aggressive when she fought. Kei always nodded, never saying anything. She would become more passionate when she fought Fukou again. She was saving all of her best moves for him.

Technology allowed Kei to communicate with Shin, Neji, and Jou, but Fuu just ignored her. Once, when she was young, she had tried starting a conversation with him over a messaging system, but he just put her on block, and never took her off. She sent him emails, just friendly little things, but she had no way to tell if he had read them. She tried phoning him, but he never picked up.

"It's odd," Jou had said to her once at one of his birthday parties. Jou always held the best parties. "He should talk to you because whenever I tell him I've talked to you, he always asks how you are doing and shit, but he acts like it's nothing. You hurt him, Angel. He hasn't been the same since. Eventually he'll stop being mad with you."

And so Kei and Fuu were able to get bits and pieces of information regarding each other. Kei knew that Fuu had also joined the martial arts clubs, and that he was getting gold metals left, front, right and center. Of course he would, though, because he was still getting lessons from Yasha-sensei. Kei only had what she had taught herself and what she was learning from others. Kei knew that Fuu was also doing well in all his classes, and Jou said it was because of the competitions between Jou and Fukou, both of them always wanting to be first.

"If it wasn't for me not joining the fighting clubs, we'd be fighting all the time," Jou often joked.

However, Kei and Fuu only saw each other once more during the remainder of their childhood. It was a jujitsu match. Normally, Kei's school would have gotten thrown out of the competition, but in her last year of school, they did surprisingly well. Kei had been able to take gold instead of bronze medals, as did many of her friends, and this had allowed them to get all the way to the very top. Kei felt even more nervous when she found out the other school was her old one. She had never had to fight her old school before.

Sitting on the hard bleachers in the hot gym, Kei waited for her turn to come up. Her first fight was against some boy named Davis, but by the end… her last fight, the free-style competition, was going to be against Fukou. Her hands felt clammy every time she thought about it. He was over on the other side of the gym, and she craned her neck to try to see him, but she couldn't.

In the bleachers behind her, sat Shin, Neji and Jou. Shin and Jou had both purchased pennants of both schools, so that they could cheer for both Fuu and Kei. Neji, on the other hand, had simply bought the pennant for Kei's school. "Fuu's getting too big for his breeches," he growled when they inquired as to his purchase. "I'm rooting for solely for Kei-chan. I hope she kicks his ass."

Also in the bleachers, were Kei's family. They, sadly, heard Neji's language. "These are the boys that she has been growing up with under our noses?" Fai asked, firmly believing that males shouldn't cuss in proper society.

Kei was away when Fuu fought his first round of the evening. She had accidentally gotten a few scrapes on her arm when she had snuck her way out of a wrist lock, and was getting them properly cleaned by the nurse. Kei was sad she had missed it. Apparently he had had the quickest fight that whole night.

"Did you see that?" Shin cheered. "He just laid the smack down! Woo! Way to go Fuu!"

"At least they are very supportive," Sora said with a smile to her husband. Fai merely gritted his teeth.

Kei was sweating by the time her name was called again. The last two free style competitions had been impressive. By this time, Kei knew her school had lost the main competition. The previous fights had been for points, and her school had been lacking on form, as well as victories. These last three fights merely took the top three competitors from each school, and pitched them against each other in a chance for them to show off what they knew. She took her place on the gym floor, oblivious to the cheers of her friends or the flashing lights on the cameras.

"Come on, Kei-chan! Kick his ass!"

"Go Fuu-sama! Go Konseki-san!"

"Show him what you've got, Kei! Fuu, don't be a dick!" warned Jou.

Neji sighed, watching Kei as Fukou approached. "My Kei-chan has gotten so beautiful."

"How can you tell?" snorted Shin. "She's all the way down there, and you're all the way up here!"

Kei had not properly prepared herself for this fight. As soon as she saw Fukou, she realized it. She was terrible ill-prepared. She had been waiting for that sweet boy that had smiled at her when she promised she would never leave him, and what she met on the battlefield was not what she had expected.

For one, she had forgotten that he would have matured as well. Fuu had gotten taller, his features more sharply defined. His black hair was as ill-kept as ever, but he kept the ends secured with an elastic band at the nape of his neck. His green eyes were more directed and brutal than she had ever imagined. Every step he took was filled with power, and his mouth was set into a straight line more suitable for sneering than for smiling. But he did smile at her, and it scared her. It was a cruel, heartless smile.

She found herself looking at Fuu's father in the body of fourteen year old. It was distressing, maybe even more distressing than the chill his body gave off. She had thought he was icy when she had first met him, but nothing could have prepared her for this. He was cold, calculating and malicious… and she wanted her friend back.

He cracked his knuckles, and that malicious smile made her gulp. "I've been waiting for this for a long time, Kei."

"Konseki-san!" she snapped.

They bowed to each other, and that was when Kei spotted what would become her undoing. His _gi_ was pulled tightly, subtly hinting that he was as, if not more, muscular than her. But more muscle didn't mean that he was going to be stronger than her. Kei had tuned her body into liquid steel; no one was stronger than her. Nor did he mean he was as fast as her. Large muscle could weight people down. No, what was her undoing was the grace with which he moved, the obvious way he had in being aware of every inch of his body. He was a _trained_ fighter, which meant her was better off than Kei's natural ability. She looked like a clumsy child next to him as she bowed.

The bell rang and they began, both of them sinking back, neither one doing anything. They glared at each other. Kei's blue-grey eyes narrowed. "You've always been mad at me," she hissed, "so why don't you just take it out by throwing a few punches!"

"I don't hit girls," he growled. Unlike Kei, who kept shifting her toes to gain better footing, he was balancing perfectly.

"You mean you don't hit _me_," she corrected with a snarl. "You've hit girls before, Fuu-sama." Kei strengthened her voice when she saw the light in Fukou's eyes change, becoming dangerous. He was looking for a fight, and Kei was more than willing to give him reason for one. "Fight me, Fuu-sama! You coward, _fight me_!"

His other leg whipped around. Kei dodged under it, striking out her own leg. She knocked Fuu down, but he rolled back up in a flash. They began blocking each other, coming body to body, bruises starting to form already as they fought.

Kei's mother gasped. Their kicks and punches were a blur of motion! She had never thought that fighting could look so dangerous or so beautiful, or that Kei would be so _good_ at it! "Fai, maybe we should look at getting Kei-chan back into martial arts so she can refine her technique."

Her husband was already wondering where she had learned it from. Had the strange, private man named Yasha really taught his daughter to move like that? His mouth was agape as Fuu flipped Kei and she broke her fall before flipping him back.

"I didn't want to leave you!" Kei muttered before she blocked a kick. Now they were circling each other, wary. Both of them had improved over the past several years, Fuu more than Kei. Now they were panting, talking, and waiting for the opportune time to attack. Kei hadn't felt so helpless in a long time; she hadn't expected Fuu to hold a grudge against her. It wasn't her fault she had moved away, after all. "I tried to communicate with you, but you wouldn't let me in! Why do you hate me so much?"

Fuu attacked again, this time with fancy footwork. It was complex, and Kei couldn't keep up as she tried to follow him. She was no longer concentrating on fighting him, or on her fighting skills, but on reaching past those rock-hard eyes to the little boy she had left behind. She was certain that the old Fuu was in there, somewhere!

As a result of her wandering attention, a strong arm locked around her neck. A body pressed itself against her. Fukou's other arm wrapped around her torso, keeping her arms pinned to her side. His scent was familiar, but it too had changed. Now it was older, heavier, muskier even. He smelled good.

She struggled against his arms. He _was_ strong, wasn't he? Kei managed to get one arm free, but she was hesitant to use it. She only knew of underhanded ways to get out of his hold, and she didn't want to really hurt him. Her heat was pounding in her chest, not just because of the adrenaline rush from fighting, it was also from the breath she felt on her skin from Fukou. It left a hot, burning streak against her skin that was filled in by ice when he breathed in. The sound of his voice in her ear, the intimacy of it, the crispness of his voice, it made her feel colder than his touch ever could.

"You lying _bitch_," he snarled. "Why would I ever want to associate with you? You're a girl! You're just like one of them! So manipulative; so selfish! You're a liar! You told me you would never leave me, you _promised_ and then you left." His body shuddered. "Kei, you left without coming to see if I was okay! You left without saying _goodbye_…"

Her head was swimming, her vision blurring. Obviously Fukou was not going to let go. She gasped for air. Her neck hurt. She could hear people in the crowd calling out for a foul as he choked her out. It was Kei's fault for being too stubborn to tap out. Kei suddenly jammed her foot right over his knee cap. Fukou released her and she rolled away, glaring at the ground. 'Stupid!' Her body shook, and she wasn't sure who she was calling stupid.

She breathed heavily, rubbing her sore throat. Her short hair clung to her red cheeks. Kei didn't look up at Fuu, not until she was ready to. Just before she had kicked him, she had felt _it_. She had felt a tear land on her face, another on her shoulder. Never had she imagined that leaving could have caused him this much pain. Never had she imagined that he would cry. Fuu was too strong and cold to cry, wasn't he?

Slowly, she looked up at him. Fukou wasn't crying anymore, but he was still cold, still reserved. In his green eyes, she saw a tiny glimmer of respect. He was mad at her, furious and hurt, but he was healing his anger by fighting her, getting over a wound that he had childishly kept from closing, and had put there himself to begin with.

As neither of them were moving, the judge stepped forward to conclude the match over. He stopped when Kei put up her fists again, preparing for round two. The cool voice in her mind that moved her body took over again. On the sidelines, her coach was crying tears of joy. Finally, she was fighting with the passion he had always wanted to see in her.

After fifteen minutes, the referee called time. Both of them were exhausted and hurt. Bowing to each other stiffly, they backed away to nurse their wounds. Their comrades swarmed them on the field, accidentally slapping them on bruised shoulders.

"Wow, Kei-san! That was awesome!"

"Kei-san, I've never seen anybody fight like that!"

She cherished the sudden attention from her peers. Normally they ignored her, because she was a freak, a macho-girl trying to be a boy, and often they were jealous that she could beat them. Her peers were of the belief that guys had failed if they were beaten by a girl, unaware that Kei felt the exact opposite herself.

Kei didn't hear the judges announce a tie. She was too busy staring at Fukou. He was surrounded by girls. He smiled at them all charmingly, but Kei knew it wasn't his real smile. She had seen Fuu's real smile, and this was fake. Some of the girls shot her evil looks as they fawned over his bruises, others giggled when he visibly flirted with them. Kei felt a small stab of jealousy.

"Let's all go out for milkshakes at WacDonald's!" one of the boys suggested. He grinned. "Is our gold medalist going to come with us?"

"What? Oh... sure, just let me talk to Fuu-sama first."

As she approached, he stood a little straighter, and he seemed to start flirting more again. Girls got out of her way, wrinkling their noses. Kei knew she smelled like sweat; did they have to act as if she had the plague? Fukou was hardly smelling like a spring rose himself, and yet they threw themselves at him! Where did he find such twits? "Fuu-sama?"

"Fuu-kun… that… that _girl_ is talking to you," one of the females said when Fuu pretended not to have heard Kei's soft voice.

'Of course he didn't hear me,' she bitterly thought, another stab of jealousy landing in her heart. 'He was too busy flirting with some twit.'

He turned to her, and when he flashed that fake smile she wanted to claw it off his face. "Ah, Kei."

"Kon-se-ki-san!" she snapped, sounding it out for him syllable by syllable. Her eyes softened a little, but only to him. She still glared at all the girls surrounding him and pawing at him. 'Since when did this bastard manage to get an entourage of women?' "Is everything all right between us now? Do you want to go and fight some more? I don't like…"

"Eww," one of the girls interrupted with a sneer. She pressed her breasts against Fuu's arm as she clung to him. "Fighting is all nasty and icky… I think I like Fuu-kun better as a lover than a fighter!"

She felt her face twitch. 'How can he let those girls hang off of him like that? Wait… how can they let themselves hang on to him like that? This is disgusting! What the hell is Fuu doing, helping to train whores and prostitutes or something? Have they no shame!' Kei managed to suppress a growl and refrain from attacking the girls who clung to one of her best friends. 'And why the hell are the calling him Fuu-_kun_!' She felt her eyebrow twitch again. 'And when did these girls find the time to grow breasts!' But even Kei wouldn't go so far as to think that they made her feel inadequate. The gi she was wearing hid the curves of her form and of her muscle. She looked sexless in it, which was how she liked it, otherwise members of the opposing teams started _leering_ at her…

Ignoring them as best she could, she kept her voice straight and kept her attention on Fukou. "I don't like us not being friends. Are you sure we can't take a moment in private to talk?" He just kept _staring_ at her with that fake smile of his, and she clenched her fists to keep from slapping him. Why did he have to stare like that? "Okay, _fine_. I'll say it here."

She felt her face blush crimson, but she kept her grey eyes locked with his. "You were becoming the closest friend I ever had, Fuu-sama. I hurt you when you left, I realize that I apologize. But you hurt me back. You acted like I never existed. Every time I tried to talk to you, to apologize and show you that I still want to be friends with you, you pushed me away. I enjoyed being your friend, and occasionally your enemy, but you kept me from being able to be your friend again by never talking with me. I wasn't even just an enemy. I was invisible to you! But I want what I… what _we_ had back. I want your friendship."

His answer surprised the girls clinging around him. "I've changed, Konseki-san."

"So have I."

"Not really," he said, turning around and starting to walk away with his entourage. Fuu waved to her flippantly. "You haven't changed _that_ much. You still look like a boy!"

Kei allowed him the last word in that fight. She recognized the old Fuu when she saw him. But as she stood there smiling, and heard the girls laugh when he invited them all over to his house so they could "get to know each other better", her face twitched again.

Just when had he gotten so involved with girls? Her eyes narrowed. "I swear, he's as lecherous as Neji."

* * *

A few hours later, Fuu and a girl were in a movie theater, and Fukou was having a blast playing with this power he had discovered. His father had always told him that girls were weak, sentimental fools, and Fukou was starting to understand why. Drop a few sweet lines, wrap your arms around them, and they would let you do whatever you wanted to them. The girl was sighing as he touched her, brushing her hair and holding her close. She wasn't even aware of how inconsequential she was, the stupid girl.

He wasn't quite sure when he had started enjoying females. If he had to guess, he would have said that it was when he and Neji stole some pornography magazines from Neji's father when they were thirteen. After that, girls seemed a lot more interesting, and he had trouble keeping his eyes and hands away from their delicious posteriors.

But more importantly, girls made him feel good. For those few, precious moments when he was making out with them, he was the most important thing in the world to them. He could give them what he wanted it, or he could draw it out and deny them their pleasure. It was beautiful

Fuu liked girls because they made him feel important. They made him feel like a god. He was omnipotent. And they were willing to be thrown away when he was done with them.

But as he kissed the girl keeping him company, Fukou could only think of one thing. Kei. She was… she was… she was amazing!

She was the exception to everything that he had ever learned about girls. She was maternal, caring, and sensitive, but she kept her feelings hidden underneath an expression that made people thing she was a contrary little girl. Long ago, Fukou had figured out what people had meant when they said that both Fukou and Kei looked disagreeable.

They looked sour. They looked lost. They looked as if they were always trying to find something out, their eyes narrowed and their concentration evident. It made them look like they were always on the verge of arguing. They scowled a lot, they were defensive of their families… it was self-defense, trying to frighten people away by making themselves look unappealing, by looking moody and grumpy. But really, deep down, they were just confused.

'Or, in Kei's case, by blanking those eyes of hers so that they reflected nothing, and you were talking to a drone on PMS.'

But Kei hadn't looked like that just before she had moved away. Then she had been open, less argumentative, smiling and being less polite, less stuffy… more like a little kid.

'She doesn't even look like that now,' he reflected. Now Kei looked… sad. But she made it look beautiful. She was still short, and somewhere over the past few years she had become aware of her own body. She wasn't awkward when she moved anymore; in fact, there was not the slightest trace of awkwardness in her.

She walked with self-confidence now, quietly, with small footsteps and her head was held high. It was the attitude of somebody who didn't care what people thought of her anymore. Some part of her had given up on trying to fit in, and she was just herself now. But she still blushed a little when he was around… it was a sign that she cared what he thought. He was still important to her.

Her face had grown older, her visage smoothing out. Her nose didn't seem so ill suited for her face anymore, accenting the curve of her eyes and her high cheekbones. Her mouth was naturally in a soft pout, giving her a look of innocence. Her hair was cut mostly to her ears lobes, laying straight and cut down at a drastic angle so it touched her chin. It shimmered and bounced when she walked, and looked very chic. But it was also grave, and fierce looking on her when she fought.

She was slender, but strong. Remembering the pull and force behind her throws and punches made him wonder what she would look like without a gi. The thought was driving him insane. Just how toned was she? Was every bit of her muscle?

'God, she's got to have a great ass!'

And then there were her eyes. She had once told Fukou that people said her eyes were going to turn grey after they were exhausted from being blue. Sure enough, they had. But they weren't plain like she had expected. They were the most amazing eyes he had ever seen. They were flecked with sapphire blue against a crystal background that made her eyes seem to go on forever. He could fall into those eyes and drown in them.

But what made Kei more than being pretty, what made her stunning, was that she was unaware of how beautiful she was. She held her had high not because she wanted to impress others, but to show them that no matter how much they teased her she would never give a damn about them. She was a fighter; she looked her enemy in the eye… and her enemy just happened to be the whole world.

He couldn't _wait_ to see her again.


	8. Time After Time

AN: Woot! One more essay is out of the way, as is my Latin test! I've discovered that writing Latin tests and being out of it with a cold isn't a good idea. I started making up verb tenses and stuff… oh well. Nothing to be done now. I made my bed, and now I will sleep in it. But you know what would make me feel better? Fluff… lots of fluff…

Aamalie: Oh, you. (_sighs_) There's nothing I can do to actually deter you from reading fan fics in class, is there? Oh well. Thank you, Aamalie. And I'll look forward to your comments over AIM, as soon as I have time to talk over it again.

Fantastical Queen: All I have to say is… no one as called Fuu a bitch yet, and when you did, I think I peed myself laughing.

Hououza: Actually, I really liked how you phrased that sentence: 'like their souls are recalling the shape they once held and are reforming their bodies around it'. It's clearer and shorter than anything I would have been able to come up with.

Fireblade: I would love to have said that you called for fluff, and I speedily answered, but this chapter has been around for a while, so saying that would be a blatant lie. But there is some fluff—and my attempt at comedy—in here as well.

Lily Thorne: You can thank Mikaila-sama and the Kumo No Su website for the ideas for Miroku's personality in this story. It's very hard, I'm finding, to write a character that looks like how she often draws Miroku's reincarnation (if that made any sense)… That's why I give kudos to the people who can make a modern Miroku and keep him ho in character.

Siren: O.o Does there have to be a reason? I've heard it said that some men prefer breasts, other butts. I don't know why. I think that you'll have to go find a man to first see if this is true. But knowing our Miroku, maybe the answer is just something simple and he likes them because they are easier to grope? (I mean, they already are down at that level, so…)

Starzki: Don't worry. Kei will find a way to get the old Miroku back.

Chadrific: Becoming a Miroku? I love Miroku is becoming an adjective in the IY world… (_laughs_).

Fred the Mutant Pickle: Thank you very much, but don't forget your sleep! One day it will become the most important thing around! …I ran out of Kleenex… (_cries_).

Ignorant Wisdom: True. Don't forget, though, that he is someone different… ah well. You'll see it later when Kei starts debating things. …I've said too much.

Ninalee-chan: Not as heated as you may think. Actually, Kei won't actually come to question his involvement with girls until chapter twenty, believe it or not. I don't really know why it took that long. It's definitely more a personality trait of Kei though, who is worried about hurting her friends and has less of a temper in her young adulthood than Sango did. Sango would have been right there demanding answers, but Kei is much more relaxed. I really wish that my muse would field her own questions.

Heysuesista: I honestly don't know what Kagome and Inuyasha would have thought. I think, in retrospect, that Kagome would have been more than willing to help Kei and Fuu see each other, but that would have gone nowhere because Fukou wasn't willing to see Kei. As for question number two, I think that Miroku would be shocked to see how sullen he is in the future and would promise Kei that would never happen.

Sangonesan: It was called Big Yellow Taxi because that's the name of the song lyrics.

Anyway, enjoy!

"If you're lost you can look,

And you will find me, time after time.

If you fall I will catch you,

I will be waiting

Time after time."

Time After Time, by Cyndi Lauper

* * *

**Chapter Eight: Time After Time**

Kei rode her bike to school, jumping off her bike as she rode it up to the stand. She wasn't worried about accidentally flashing people her underwear because she always wore shorts under her uniform skirt. She had ever since she had started getting into fights with boys in grade six, when they had insulted her and she had fought to defend her honor. She had never gotten caught either, because no boy wanted to admit that they had gotten beaten up by a girl.

She fixed her high school uniform, sighing contentedly. 'High school,' she thought with a bit of pride. 'It seems as if I would never get here!' Walking up to the building, she saw a familiar sight and laughed out loud, childishly. The person in question turned at the sound, her tongue lolling out and her gold eyes happy. Her triangular ears perked up.

Wolfsbane barked, her tail thumping back and forth as she stood up. Her tail was moving so quickly it was liable to fall off. She leapt up as Kei neared her, licking Kei's face with her warm tongue, apparently ignorant of Kei's wild giggles at the scent of her doggy breath. Nonetheless, Kei hugged the husky tightly, wondering when exactly she had starting missing the canine she had once feared.

'If Wolfsbane is here…' Her heart leapt, and she looked around at the sea of students. She was able to pick Fuu out only because of the silkiness with which he moved. He carried a laptop, and his hair was still held back at his neck with an elastic. The dark blue—nearly black—of the uniform looked natural on him, accenting his skin and the color of his hair. His eyes were masked by glasses, which surprised her, but they looked good on him too. As she started forward, he was doing up the top most buttons on his school clothes, trying to get into proper uniform, sliding out of his leather jacket.

"_Fuu-sama_!" She jumped on his back, wrapping her arms around his neck. She suddenly felt six years old again. He jumped in surprise and she looked at him quizzically. "You have an earring!" she exclaimed, staring at the shiny gold loop in his ear.

Before Kei could react further, he shook her off and turned around to look at her. She was wearing the summer uniform, and Fuu could now see the muscle on her that he had wondered about earlier. She had the body of a warrior, of an Amazon. Her arms were made to bare swords, her body to run, her legs to charge and kick.

And, as he was shocked to see revealed by the uniform, she had breasts. Holding her arms, he stared down at her chest in shock. "Kei!... you grew breasts!"

Her face went red. "Pervert!" She slapped him so hard his cheek went the same shade as her ashamed face.

Seeing them, Shin and Neji ran up, cheering and waving. Shin looked at Fuu curiously when he saw the reddened cheek. "What happened to your face?"

"Shut up."

Neji's brown eyes glowed as he saw Kei was present. He held out his hands and hugged her tightly. Kei smiled. "Kei-chan! I didn't expect to see you here! Why didn't you tell us that you were going to come to the same high school as us?" A strange look crossed his face and he looked down at he looked down at her chest. "You grew breasts!"

Shin thought his friends were crazy. He gave Kei a friendly handshake as a greeting, knowing that if he tried hugging her in front of Neji and Fukou, he'd get holes bored into his head from their glares. Kei's grin grew; Shin was by far the least moody in the reunited group of friends, and always reminded her of a teddy bear. He looked at his two male friends innocently.

"Oh! That's right! You too didn't see Kei this summer because you were both too busy working," he teased, ignoring the sounds and sights behind him as Kei punched Neji for his perversion. "You should see her in a bathing suit!" Luckily, Kei was too busy removing Neji's hand from her ass to hear the comment, otherwise she would have had to beat Shin as well.

When Neji got the point—not to grope Kei—she answered Neji's earlier question. "When Mom and Dad moved, they moved out of the district for elementary and middle schools, but not high school! So here I am, fifteen, a high school student, and with my best friends!" The last words she spoke directly to Fukou, but they were the only two who saw this. She smiled at him. "Your glasses look good."

Shin snickered. "He needed them from all the time he spent looking at porn!"

Kei blushed, looking up at him in surprise. "Oh. So _that's_ how you started liking girls."

Fuu felt a little ashamed, and so he became defensive, standing up a little taller. He would have folded his arms and stared down at her, trying to egg her on into a fight, but he had his laptop tucked under one arm, and his jacket thrown over the other. "What's that supposed to mean?"

She smiled innocently, reaching over and poking his stomach. He wondered how she could still be so cute when all the other girls he knew were turning into bombshells, and all the other boys he knew were turning gangly and entering the "awkward" stage. But Kei still seemed to act like she was only eight years old, or maybe eleven at the most. "I knew you were a pervert ever since you started coming over and rapping on my window so you could sneak into my bedroom!" she teased.

The other two boys joined in with the teasing, asking Fukou if he had ever seen anything, and making both of them turn red. As she stood there blushing, sputtering with embarrassment while Shin and Neji asked if Fukou had ever gone through her panty drawers when she wasn't paying attention—Fuu was also a dark shade of red and looked ready to pound Neji into a fine pulp—she realized that nothing had really changed. She had spent years worrying about the day when she would meet Fukou again, when she would have all of her friends reunited, and that worry had been pointless. The elation she felt was overwhelming.

"What does she look like naked?"

"Did you ever get caught?"

"Is her ass as good looking as we think?" That was Neji.

"_We were six! I never saw anything_!" he bellowed. People actually stopped and looked, but he ignored them. He mumbled something, rolling his eyes as Neji and Shin pretended to cower, but Kei still heard him. "Besides, why would I even want to look? It's not like Kei's attractive. She's too unfeminine…"

Kei belted him in the arm—a real one, not some punch she knew he cold dodge. "Bastard!" The bell ran before she could grab him and throw him to the ground, wanting to tickle him into admitting that he found her at least slightly attractive. Kei knelt down and kissed Wolfsbane goodbye, using the dog as a shield to compose herself as she felt tears sting her eyes.

His comment had hurt. It wasn't the first time she had heard someone say that about her.

When she looked up she saw Fukou ignoring her and rubbing his arm where she had punched him she felt a small stab of guilt. Maybe she'd punched him too hard.

"Kei!" Jou ran up to her in the halls a moment later, banishing her guilt and bringing back her good mood. He also distracted her from looking around and her new school with her mouth agape. Jou's hair was cut short, and it had darkened over the years. Now it was a deeper shade of red, and less fire-like than it had been in elementary school. His freckles, however, stood out more than ever. "Angel-chan! We're in glass together!"

She could hardly control her excitement at this news. She laughed loudly, clapping Jou on the back as they conspired in the halls. Her grey eyes were filling with mischief. Jou made her want to be mischievous. "I pity the teacher, Kitsune-kun!"

"So do I!" Laughing, he slowed, walking next to her on their way to class. He grinned wildly. Jou had changed the most physically over the years, but deep down he had changed the least. He still enjoyed teasing girls and putting bugs down their shirts to watch them squirm. Not that he did that when Kei was around, however, as he knew she'd beat him senseless for picking on girls. He still enjoyed playing smaller tricks on the teachers, and Kei was glad for it. She liked knowing that one of her friends still encouraged her to act like a kid now and then. If it wasn't for Jou and his "games" the last time Kei would have acted like a kid would have been puddle hopping with Fukou.

His blue eyes were wild as he leaned in, whispering. "Guess who else is in our class?" He didn't wait for her to guess before he told her the answer. "Fuu-sama is! Isn't that great? This year is going to rock socks!"

She agreed. Kei leaned over and gave Jou a kiss on the cheek for bringing this good news, which made Jou turn the same shade as his hair, but when Fukou saw Jou and Kei sit next to him in class, he wasn't quite so thrilled.

He could stand Jou being in class with him, and they had been in classes together many times before. Kei, on the other hand, had just proved to him that she was still his friend. Nothing had seemed to change with her, except that she'd gotten better at punching. If she looked over at him during roll call and started to pity him, he was going to have everything changed up on him.

He rubbed his arm self-consciously. She did have a good punch, didn't she? He could already feel a bruise forming. 'How long has it been since I've gotten a bruise? Only three people ever managed to bruise me before, and Kei is the only girl…'

The more he thought about it, the more the idea of Kei being fighter, of Kei being strong enough to punch him, of being a fighter, of being unafraid to throw that punch… it kind of turned him on.

Not realizing he was staring at her, his gaze softened. She was chatting amiably with Jou, smiling and laughing, looking alive and happy. That's how Kei should be. Too many of his memories of her involved her looking sad, lonely and lost. He wanted to make new memories of her laughing. Fukou didn't want to lose her.

"When did you get a laptop?" Kei asked suddenly, digging out pens from her knapsack.

"What? Oh. I worked last year and managed to save up enough money for it."

"I see you also didn't bring a lunch. Or are you going to buy a lunch?" She smiled at him. "Do you want to share mine again?"

The teacher walked in before their conversation could continue further. They sat in perfect silence, listening to the usual prattle about class expectations, school policies, and the same boring lecture that had gotten since they'd first started school.

Fukou played solitaire, bored out of his mind. It also kept him from worrying about what would happen when Kei would find out his real name. How would she look at him when the teacher called out his real name and he answered? Would she look at him with that loathed expression? He started picturing it, watcher her eyes lose their sharpness and become clouded over with tears, her mouth turning into a pout that would be sensual if he didn't hate the idea of seeing it so much.

'Her hair's gotten longer,' he thought absentmindedly, sneaking a risk over at her. She was staring straight ahead, as if the speech was captivating, but he had known her well enough to see that it was only a mask. She was just as bored as he was deep down, and the sketches emerging on the paper before her were testament to that.

Then, suddenly, it was the moment that he dreaded. The teacher began taking attendance. Luckily, he didn't have to wait very long. Fuu was only the second name down on the list. The teacher held the attendance in his hands, glancing up to see the faces that went with each name, and where they were sitting. Even the teacher didn't believe the name on the list. "Aisowotsukasu Fukou."

He stood up. "Present." Some of the people in the class turned to him, wondering who he was. He refrained from glaring at them. What were they expecting? Some mutant or a freak of nature or something?

Fukou heard Kei's sharp intake of breath when she heard his name. She stood straighter in her desk, he eyes fixed on the board and unwavering. Her body was frozen. She didn't even look at him as he sat back down.

She had always thought—maybe even known—that Fuu wasn't his real name, but… 'They named him '_accident'_? I bet it was that bastard father of his! Why didn't he ever tell me? If he had, I wouldn't have always teased him about having such a girly name… nickname,' she corrected herself. Kei was practically boring holes in the blackboard.

A paper ball landed on her desk. Opening it, Kei found Fukou's handwriting—it was basically chicken scratch—staring up at her. 'Well? Aren't you going to say something?' Fukou was becoming unnerved at her silence, but he was glad that she hadn't looked up at him with that pitying expression.

'How can he know me so well after years of not talking to me?' she wondered as she thought of what to write. Kei had _lots_ of things to say, in fact, but it wasn't appropriate to say any of them. Instead she kept her thoughts to herself, and she'd let them all out next time she punched something. Next to Fuu's chicken scratch, Kei's hand looked like calligraphy. 'It's not my place to say anything.'

'Yes, it is,' Fukou wrote back, in between taking a few sparse notes down on the course outline. 'You're my friend; that makes you entitled to have some say in my life, doesn't it?'

'Fine, if you really want to know. I think that you're father needs to have his kneecaps shot out, his fingers broken and his teeth removed one by one, all without painkillers for being such a jerk as to name you an accident. This will be his punishment because it means he won't be able to masturbate—which I've heard is torture for guys—he won't be able to talk, and… well, maybe he can keep his kneecaps so that he's not stuck around the house and you can have some peace and quiet.

'Secondly, if you ever believe that you really were an accident, I swear to Buddha that I'm going to take you to Yasha-sensei, and _he_ can kick your ass for being a dick.'

When Fukou read what she had written, he laughed out loud, and immediately got a detention. Not that he really cared. He carefully folded up the note behind the safety of his computer screen and he slipped it into his pants' pocket. Fukou was never going to lose the letter.

Periodically, during the day, he kept touching it to make certain that it was still there. Something about what was written on it kept jogging his memory, but he couldn't quite grasp it. Eventually, he remembered. Kei had told him to never believe anything his father said because it was a blatant lie. But he had been right about girls. Girls were silly, and weak, and promiscuous… so what if Kei was the exception to that rule? Despite the school uniform, Kei was one of the boys… right?

* * *

At lunchtime that day, Kei ran out to meet her friends. Sure enough, they were outside enjoying the beautiful weather, the wind rustling through the trees, lounging in the shade. Neji was flashing smiles to the girls, his shirt half opened, Shin was doodling in his sketchbook, and Jou was playing with his food. Nothing had really changed… but where was Fuu?

Shin looked up from his sketchbook to see Kei and her curious expression. He blinked innocently. He'd forgotten that she hadn't known. "Usually it's just Jou-sama and I for lunch. Neji-sama and Fuu-sama like to eat with the girls."

Another pang went through her heart. "Oh? Girls?" She leaned over to see Neji better. "If you like eating with the girls, Neji-kun, why aren't you eating with them?" She pointed to the girls waving at him. "They seem interested in having you join them."

Neji turned back to her, and he gave her one of those charming smiles. His, compared to Fuu's, seemed genuine, and Kei felt her heart skip a beat when she saw all that attention was focused solely on her. He reached over and took her hand, pulling her closer and pressing her hand over his own quickly beating heart. "My dearest Kei," he purred in a smooth voice. "It is true that at one point I did eat with the members of the opposite sex, but why should I, when this spot here is graced with not only one of my closest companions, but the prettiest girl in the school?"

A giggle nearly got away, but instead she snapped her hand away when he tried to kiss it. "Neji… quit being such a bastard!" Kei stomped over to the other side of the circle and sat beside Jou. Eventually Neji drifted over and sat with the girls anyway, leaving Kei fuming.

What was with the boys in their group? Jou and Shin were still treating her the same way they always had, like she was their sister or something, Fuu was being his usual half-bastard, half-best friend self, but what was with Neji? Whatever it was, Kei didn't like it. She didn't like it one bit.

Because, damn it, those words had actually gotten through to her…

'I'm going to kill Neji!'

* * *

When Kei arrived home that day, she was the only one there. She raced to her computer, ready to play around since she didn't have any homework. Kei wanted to take advantage of it, because she knew that come the following afternoon, the homework would build up and up until she was buried under the textbooks.

Later that evening, she was talking online when a new name popped up. She was a little bit taken aback, until the person on the other end of the connection called her Kei and mentioned Yasha-sensei. After that, she clued into who it was, and when Fukou mentioned that Yasha-sensei had told her to get her butt over to the shrine so that he could see these moves that had won her a gold medal, she grabbed her jacket and headed downstairs.

Her father had gotten home not too long ago, and was in the kitchen fixing supper. He smiled when he heard her thunder down the stairs. When was the last time Kei had been so excited? "Kei!" he hollered sternly, emerging from the kitchen drying his hands with the dishtowel. "What have I told you about running down the stairs?"

"Sorry, Father, it's just…"

"How was school?" he asked suddenly, smiling and catching her off guard.

"Ah, good, thank you for asking Father. I was just…"

"Anything interesting happen?"

"No… no… well, I guess…" She took a deep breath. "Did you realize that I'm going to the same school as Fuu-sama?"

His grin only grew. He was so proud of his daughter! When he was her age, he was well aware that he would have hidden that fact from his parents. Kei was such an honest girl! He leaned down to her level.

"I know about that, Kei. He was your friend, and I wouldn't split apart such a good friendship simply because Fuu's immaturity was getting you into trouble as well. I hear he's grown up to be a fine boy, now that he's matured. I only hope that you two will be good friends still. Oh, and don't worry about telling your Mom about this. I'll let her know."

Kei beamed up at her father. She was so lucky to have such great parents! "Thank you, Daddy."

"Now, where are you running off to?" he asked, straightening and throwing the dishtowel over his shoulder.

She nervously looked down at the ground. "Well, um… Fuu-sama must have mentioned our fight to Yasha-sensei, because Yasha-sensei wants me over at his shrine as soon as possible." She blushed slightly. "He says he wants to see what a gold medalist can do."

"I guess I'm lucky then," her father noted, ruffling her hair. "Because I've seen what you can do, and it's amazing. I will look forward to see what you can do in the future, once Yasha-sensei starts teaching you again."

"But, he's not…" She stared at her father, her protest trailing away. Kei's initial stare gave way to one of disbelief and growing excitement. "Daddy… you mean… you mean _really_? I get to train with him again? And with Fuu-sama?" When he nodded, she couldn't contain herself and she jumped at him, throwing her arms around his neck. Her smile was so large it hurt. Her father was wearing the same stupidly happy smile. "Oh thank you, Daddy! Thank you so much!"

* * *

Kei blushed as she stood in line up, back at the Higurashi shrine. She could feel Fukou down the line from her, hear Wolfsbane in the background whining as she felt left out, and the old haze that surrounded her mind whenever she came back to shrine was once again wrapped tightly around her mind. There was something about this place, and she vowed that one day she would figure out what it was.

Yasha-sensei was assigning partners to fight for basic warm ups. She hadn't realized that he had finished until she found Fukou staring down at her, smiling. She suddenly felt awkward. "Guess who you get to fight?" he asked proudly.

"But you're belts higher than me!" she protested.

"Point being? They're just warm ups." She followed him to a corner of the temple, and they began doing their warm up exercises. It was no more than three punches, repeated over and over, as they carried themselves back and forth through the much dreaded horse-stance. Personally, Kei didn't see what the big deal was about the horse-stance, as it was great at building leg muscles. She put herself through horse-stance devotedly in the secret of her room.

As they practiced, the old "passion"—as her coach had called it—flowed back to her. Her body became light as air, easier to move at flowing from strike to block with much more grace than normal. The punches were still light, none of them real punches so she didn't feel bruises forming from the impacts as she normally did when she fought Fukou. The speed, however, that did return, and soon Kei couldn't even see the blows and blocks coming, she merely felt them.

Yasha-sensei called time and they fell back in line. Kei stood until she felt a new presence behind her. She glanced over her shoulder to see a woman standing beside Wolfsbane, stroking the husky's long ears and she watched the proceedings. Her black hair was a little wavy, her blue eyes bright, and Kei was a little envious of them. How come her eyes had faded to grey while this woman's had been able to stay blue? She smiled at the children proudly, and when her eyes landed on Kei's face, they studied each one for a moment. The woman's smile grew, and then Kei heard her name being yelled.

"Y… yes, Sensei?" she asked tentatively.

"Twenty pushups now, for not paying attention."

"Y… yes, Sensei!" Kei dropped and began doing pushups as Yasha-sensei continued explaining the new exercise to the class. She felt her body starting to break out into a sweat, and her arms becoming heavy from training, but it was a good feeling. It was one of the best feelings in the world to Kei, and she could do twenty pushups without any trouble at all. But normally he wasn't so tough on her. 'Is he doing this just because I'm not a little girl anymore? No, he's not telling the other people to do twenty pushups if they put a toe out of line. Maybe it's because he knows I know this stuff and I'm acting like some green kid. Possibly.'

Kei rather liked to think that it was because Yasha-sensei wanted to see what it was she could do. She'd surprise him, she'd surprise them all with what she could do. But as she stood up, she wondered who the woman was. She could remember, vaguely… When she looked back over her shoulder, the woman was gone.

"Kei? Are you paying attention?"

"Yes, Sensei!"

"Good, then you can repeat to me what I just told you."

Kei tried her best to recall, but she couldn't remember. She felt herself start to blush, and she knew that she'd get more pushups for this. Kei didn't really care. Her teacher could assign her to do pushups for the rest of the class, and she would take it with a smile on her face. She was just glad to be back. "I seem to have suddenly forgotten, Sensei."

"Forty pushups." Kei smiled and starting doing them, but Fukou was a little surprised.

"For… forty, sir?" All Fuu could imagine was watching Kei's arms fall off from exhaustion right in front of him. He hadn't even noticed the smile on her face as she had dropped and started doing the pushups, or that she was already on number six.

Yasha-sensei looked at him, though he secretly wondered at Fukou standing up for Kei. The two exchanged a look, and Inuyasha surrendered, explaining why had given so many pushups. He didn't want Fukou to continue to challenge him and the matter wouldn't be dropped until the boy understood. He was also aware that Fukou knew he was going hard on Kei. Inuyasha really did want to see what the girl could do. He'd exercised with Sango and wanted to see if Kei had surpassed or developed that rigorous exercise, that desire to feel able to protect herself and others and keep her body in good shape.

"Twenty for the basic punishment, ten for not learning her lesson as I had just called her for not paying attention, and another ten because she lied to me. Now then, as I was saying…"

* * *

At the end of the night, Kei's body felt like she had been hit by a truck. She was so tired she didn't even sense Yasha-sensei coming up behind her until his hand landed on her shoulder. Normally she could sense things like that, and somehow when she was on shrine ground it always seemed easier to sense things coming. She looked up at him, jumping in surprise. "Sensei!"

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you." He smiled, his gold eyes warm and his white teeth visible. Kei relaxed when she saw that her teacher was in a good mood, and putting on the 'Father routine' he shared with girls only. Inuyasha loved his daughter and fell into the protective father roles so often that it seemed the girls in his classes had also become victims to his protective ways. "How many pushups did you end up doing?"

"One hundred and thirty six, Sensei," she answered with a grin.

Inuyasha was surprised. "I made you do that many? Wow. Out of curiosity, Kei, what were you doing since you moved away to keep yourself in shape?"

She straightened, proud that her teacher had noticed she had kept herself limber and had been exercising. "Every night before I go to bed I run around the block, I do twenty minutes of horse-stance, I run through the first two katas, I do forty pushups and seventy-six stomach crunches. And three nights a week I go to the gym that we had in the school and work on cardio, legs, and arms to build muscle and get toned. I mean… not to sound vain, but I don't want to be big and muscular or anything, but I want to be toned."

He nodded. "That's quite impressive. A friend of mine I had long ago used to out herself through almost the exact same routine."

Footsteps approached, and the blue-eyed woman Kei had noticed earlier sat down beside Inuyasha. She wore a smile similar to his. "She put us through it too, much to my distain. I mean, we walked enough and then she wanted to make us do horse-stance and cat-stances and balancing acts…" Kagome said warmly said before she sighed and looked at Kei. "Hello again, Kei. Has Fuu-kun told you what he used to do when he was here by himself, no one on his level to train with except for my husband?"

"No! What did he do?"

"We're not telling that story again, are we?" Fukou demanded as he came and sat on the porch with them.

"Oh, all right. I won't say anything," Kagome sighed. She laughed, a pretty laugh that made them all feel like she was the largest kid there. Then she smiled down at Kei again, leaning closer to the young girl. Kei was starting to feel nervous from that unblinking gaze, and the way Kagome seemed to stare right down into her soul when she relaxed and leaned back, her head on her husband's shoulder. Inuyasha reached his arm a round her and stroked her hair absentmindedly. "There's a lot of her in you, but you haven't gotten there yet. I hope you enjoy your second childhood, Kei-chan. Not a lot of people get a second chance with their loved ones."

"What?" she asked, confused.

Kagome smiled, and her blue eyes glanced up at her husband. "What I mean to say is that you should enjoy being a kid as long as you can. Not many people get to have a second childhood. But you should also enjoy your time with others, because it's not every day you get to spend an entire lifetime with somebody who…"

"Kagome," Inuyasha growled warningly.

She sighed, standing up. "Fine. I won't say anything else. It was very nice to meet you again, Kei-chan."

Kei jumped up, bowing respectfully as Inuyasha and Kagome left. "It was nice to meet you too, Kagome-c…sama." She didn't know why she wanted to say "Kagome-chan". Could it possibly because of her child-like laughter?

It was just Fukou and Kei. The young man looked over at her. She sat on the steps of the shrine with her arms wrapped around her legs, her chin resting on her knees. She had a silly smile on her face, but her eyes looked a little confused. She also looked a little cold. All Kei was wearing was her gi, which was damp from the sweat she had worked up. Fukou took off his sweater and held it out for her. "Here. It's a bit too small for me. You can keep it."

"Ah… thank you." She blushed, but looked at him. He had brought a change of clothes with him and was wearing a simple dress shirt, his long legs stretched out before him as he reclined on the steps. Kei felt very tiny compared to him sometimes. "Aren't you going to get cold?" she asked.

"Naw. I can take it. Ever since I was sick that one time, the cold hasn't really bothered me. I think it got its chance at me once and after it realized it couldn't kill me, it left me alone."

"Really?" Kei didn't quite believe him, but she slipped the sweater on anyway. It was nice and warm, and large on her. She curled herself up in it, but she knew that he had been lying. Fukou was big, especially compared to her, but he wasn't large. This sweater had to have been big on him as well. "I'm the other way. The cold bothers me a lot now." She stuffed her hands up the sleeves of the sweatshirt. "You know, you don't have to keep me company, Fuu-sama."

"I want to," he said with a shrug. "I'll keep you company until your Dad comes to get you. Then I know you won't be waiting out here by yourself."

Kei felt her cheeks turn a little pink. She didn't glance over at him, but she kept her eyes locked firmly on the road. "Do you like protecting me, Fuu-sama? You seem to do it a lot." He was silent, and Kei wasn't going to press the matter. He would tell her why he was always looking out for her when he was ready and not a moment sooner. "Can you at least tell me how you got your name?"

Surprised, he turned to look at her quickly. She sat there, staring at the road, bundled up in his sweater. She wasn't even looking at him, a sign that she too was uncomfortable with the topic. But she looked so small, she looked so unprotected and innocent and even insignificant compared to the towering arches above them, that he wondered how she could unsettle him so. "Why should I?"

"Well, you said it was my business, didn't you? If I'm allowed to tell you my opinion on a matter, shouldn't I also be allowed to learn the story behind it?"

Luckily, Fukou didn't have a chance to answer. A car pulled up and Kei smiled, leaping up from her spot. "I'll see you tomorrow, Fuu-sama!" she called, waving her arm as she jumped into the car.

Fukou stayed there, thinking, for a long time.

* * *

To be Continued...


	9. Don't Let Me Get Me

AN: I just discovered an anomaly in the universe: I have eight chapter uploaded for this story, yet I cannot access chapter eight… odd, ne?

For some reason, the reviews for chapter eight are also not appearing, which sucks, because there were some awesome points to which I wanted to reply. Sorry, folks. It's either no responses, or no chapter for this week. I figured you'd prefer no responses: but thank you very much for the reviews! You guys brought up some awesome points! (_grins_)

"My parents hated me, I was always in a fight

'cause I can't do nothing right.

Everyday I fight a war against the mirror because I can't take the person

Staring back at me."

-"Don't Let Me Get Me" by Pink

* * *

Chapter Nine: Don't Let Me Get Me

"Inuyasha!" Kagome exclaimed as she was ushered into the house by her husband. She whirled on him as soon as the door was shut; she was hurt, and was ready to lash out. Inuyasha understood, and wanted to be hurt. He wanted her to yell at him and say that he was a horrible person for continuing to teach people and to make money and look out for Kei and Fukou and for actually forgetting about her or their daughter for those brief half-flashes of pride he felt for his students, when he forgot that he even had a family.

It wasn't sadism coming out in him; he just had gotten hurt one too many times before, in his past in the Sengoku Jidai before he had met Kagome, or even Kikyo. The bruises from his childhood were hard to forget, even after all the good years he had had with his wife. He still expected to find those bruises when he had done something bad.

But he also knew that what Kagome was doing was dangerous. He pointed a clawed finger at her, tearing off his bandanna. He flung it onto to kitchen table. "Kagome Higurashi, you listen to me, do you understand? Do not go talking about Sango and Miroku near Kei and Fukou! No matter how much we see of those two in them, they are _not_ Miroku and Sango!"

"_You're_ the one who started it!" she hissed, crossing her arms and fidgeting to keep from lashing out at him.

"Yes, and I'm sorry, but I know you!" he protested, reaching out and grabbing her arm, holding her close. She resisted, but only because she was mad. Kagome still relied on Inuyasha in the times of trouble as much as he did her. He glared down at her, and she felt the heat from those eyes look right into her mind. "I _know_ you, Kagome! You were going to start hinting about the well, about the Sengoku Jidiai…"

"Kaede is through that well!" Kagome shouted, wrenching her arm free and pointing to the well house. She glared back up at Inuyasha. "Our daughter is on the other side of that damn well right now! It's a part of our life! They'll see something is wrong eventually and we'll have to tell them if they want to be close to us! Their fate is tied to that well—to this very shrine, Inuyasha—the same way that ours is!"

He stared at her, and her relented, agreeing with her, but he refused to let the weight of the matter slide. His grip on her arms tightened slightly, a low growl emerging from the back of his throat. Yet Kagome merely relaxed in his strange embrace, taking shelter and comfort in his strength and odd wisdom.

"Be that as it may, we still can't tell them. They have to do it on their own." He stared at her until she nodded. When she agreed to remain silent about Sango and Miroku, he kissed her nose and drew her close, his strong arms holding her body, and she relaxed against him. His hands brushed through her hair. "Everything will be all right, Kagome. Everything will be all right…"

* * *

The next day at school, Kei had remembered to pack an extra lunch for Fukou. She didn't want him going hungry. She fidgeted through the whole day, until lunch time came. She had suffered through jokes from Neji and Jou, and teased them back, taken her notes with a mind boggling amount of diligence because taking the time to make them look perfect kept her mind from worrying.

Come lunch time, she circled the school until she found the entrance up to the roof. It hadn't taken much to get Neji into telling her where Fukou usually hid for lunch. Her palms felt clammy as she walked up the stairs.

'I'm stupid,' she told herself, still climbing the stairs even as she debated turning around. 'For one, just because he shared a lunch with me when we were little doesn't mean he'll share one with me now. And I mean, it's not like we're even sharing. I just made him lunch. Because… because he's my friend! And friends do nice things for each other! Like making sure that they eat…'

However, when she got on the roof, she suddenly felt like a fool. Fuu was up on the roof, just as Neji had said. But he wasn't alone, and nor was he starving as she had thought. He was up on the roof with a girl; a voluptuous, skinny, giggling girl with perfectly applied makeup and every strand of hair in place, with a rolled up skirt to reveal long legs and perfectly done nails, she jealously noted. She also seemed like a good cook, because she had a platter spread out before them, with perfectly made little sandwiches and rolls and…

She felt bitterness suddenly rise up in her heart, but it was carefully hidden under a large layer of disgust. What was Fukou doing? Checking for tonsils or something? And the noises… it sounded like two fish mating. Kei's nose wrinkled in disgust. Gripping the lunch she had made tightly, Kei spun around, slamming the door to the roof as she left.

They jumped apart, but the roof was empty. The girl he was with shrugged, and picked up a sushi roll. She smiled at Fukou, holding it out for him. "It was probably the wind. Don't you forget to eat, Fuu-kun. I don't want you getting sick on me."

He grinned, reaching out and drawing her close after he had swallowed her cooking. She gave a small blush at feeling his body starting to press against hers, but it was unbecoming on her. 'She's a beautified whore,' he thought disdainfully, 'acting like a blushing virgin. Bitch. Slut.' The words went on, repeated words Fuu had heard even when he had his hands over his ears and he rocked back and forth on his bed, trying to drown out his father's voice.

"What's the matter? If I did get sick, it would give us an excuse to play doctor." She giggled, and they began to kiss again.

But he knew who had been up there, and he wished that she hadn't been so hasty to leave. He wished she had said something, given him a chance to explain...

Back on the ground, Kei found Neji waiting for him at the bottom of the stairs. Suddenly the disgust she had felt at seeing Fukou kiss a girl was turned into anger when she saw Neji. Kei dropped the container of food she was holding and marched right up to him. She didn't care that she was in a crowded hallway and teachers were watching her. Let them give her a detention for all she cared.

Grabbing his uniform, she shoved him up against the lockers behind him, glaring at him. She had him hoisted an inch of the ground, and he towered above her, but she could see the fear and surprise on his face. He hadn't fought her, and she had always gone easy on her punches. Fukou, she knew, could take her strength, and it was part of why she liked teasing him right back every time he picked on her. Neji had been previously unaware of just how strong she really was. Her voice was a growl. "You _knew_."

Neji tried acting innocent. His made his eyes wide, and stared down at her, trying very hard not to blink. He had heard that people blink a lot when they lie. "I don't know what you're talking about, Kei."

"You _knew_ that Fukou was up there doing… doing _that_, and you sent me up there anyway, didn't you?" People were starting to whisper, staring at them, but she didn't care. She let him down, but she didn't let go of his uniform. Her voice was still a subtle growl. Neji still kept staring down at her with his simple, irritating smile. "Why?"

He pried her fingers off of his uniform and shrugged. "I thought it would be best that you know what Fuu is."

She still glared up at him, so caught up in her anger that she didn't realize he was holding her hands now that he successfully pried her fingers off his uniform. "And what is Fuu-_sama_?" She put the accent on the 'sama', warning Neji that Fukou was not only her friend, but someone she openly respected.

Neji let go of her hands and started walking away, leaving her in the hallway, stranded and confused, still filled with anger. What was Fukou? She wasn't ready to tackle such questions yet. Kei grabbed the remaining anger in her tiny body and scooped up the bag she had dropped. Her lunch was slightly damaged, but still edible. The anger she felt kept Kei from thinking about what she had seen on the roof, and instead she thought of various ways to inflict pain on Neji.

It was slightly therapeutic.

She marched outside, and went straight to the tree. There, Jou was busy doing homework, and Shin was once again drawing in an sketchbook. She threw down the lunch bag on the table and flopped down next to them, staring up at the sky. "You guys can have my lunch. I'm not hungry anymore."

"Are you sure?" Jou asked, though Shin was already tearing into the bag. He opened the box on the top and stared at the rice. It looked like crap. Had it even been cooked properly? Shin tried to look like he appreciated it.

Poking it with his chopstick, he found it was as hard as a rock. He grinned, and wished he really could sweat drop, like in an anime. This would be the perfect time for it. "Ah, you did a nice job cooking the brown rice, Kei-chan."

"It's not brown," she mumbled, "it's white rice."

Shin felt himself loosing his appetite faster and faster. He stared at the box he held and gulped. 'This was white rice? God, how much did she over burn this? At least this explains why this blob is as hard as rock. It's a giant piece of charcoal!'

Curious, Jou opened up the other package, biting his lip to keep from laughing at Shin's face. The other boy kept poking the rice-charcoal-_thing_ Kei claimed was food. Jou looked down at what was apparently a salad. He dug out his chopsticks. And dug in. He wished he hadn't been so hasty when his mouth burst into flames. He coughed and wheezed, feeling what he had thought was a piece of lettuce burn all the way down his throat.

"Kei!" he cried, his face the same shade as his hair. The girl sat up, looking at him. "What did you put in this salad?"

Her nose cutely wrinkled again. "That's not salad… I tried making sushi."

That's when Jou realized that he'd eaten a piece of seaweed covered in wasabi. He looked at it. Everything green was covered in wasabi. Her cabbage rolls had completely fallen apart, but what was unnerving was that everything was green. Somehow, everything had become coated in hot paste. 'She…' he thought, mentally wincing. 'She screwed up making wasabi paste. How does someone screw up making something like that?'

"You wuss! I eat my cooking all the time! I'm telling you, it's perfectly edible!" Jou snapped out of his horror to find that Kei was leaning over Shin, and that she had somehow managed to snap off a chunk of the rice from the rock in the dish and she was trying to entice him into eating it by calling Shin a wuss. Jou needed to do something, and do something fast before poor Shin found himself eating he cooking if he wanted to or not.

"Hey… Kei…" he asked uncertainly, grabbing his Japanese-English dictionary he had been using for his English homework. "What's the English verb for a repeated action?"

"The imperfect." There had been a moment of concentration before she answered, and she sat back down.

"The English verb for a given command?"

Again, a moment of concentration, and the chopsticks went down. "The imperative."

"What's the English word for… ah, twin?"

A long moment of concentration, her nose wrinkling in the cute manner she had as she thought about it. The food went down completely, forgotten as she tried to remember a word she hadn't even learned in school yet. "Twin," she finally answered. Jou was surprised, and he smiled at her, giving her word after word to keep her from remembering the containers which held what she called "food" and the two boys called "stomach pains".

At least one crisis had been averted that lunch period.

* * *

Kei, after the incident at lunch time, wanted nothing more to do than to avoid Fukou for the rest of the day. She didn't know why it bothered her so much, so Kei just dismissed her awkwardness around Fukou as being leftover anger directed at Neji for not telling her that he was on the roof with a girl.

"When you get to the flame in diagram two, use the popsicle stick and insert it into the parts of the flame as outlined in figure two. Copy the burn pattern into the observations section to use them to answer the questions at the end of the lab," Kei read off the sheet.

Sitting on the stool in the science classroom, Kei shuddered. 'I mean, why would I even want to see Fuu-sama making out with some ditz? It's just gross. They looked like fishes. He's one of my closest friends. I never wanted to see that! It's just… ew!'

"Hey, Konseki-san," Fukou whispered from beside her. He was hunched over his book and peering at their Bunsen burner. Kei felt her mind go rather fuzzy and numb when he spoke to her. Her tongue didn't want to seem to mind as she tried to find some way to respond. Fukou didn't notice, however, as the Bunsen burner occupied all his attention. "I think I have this thing set up the flame we want for experiment number one. Would you mind passing me one of those popsicle sticks were supposed to use?"

"S… sure!" She reached out to get one of the popsicle sticks from the glass container, and she accidentally knocked over the whole beaker. The whole class was silent when they heard the sound of breaking glass, looking around to see who was going to get into trouble. "I'm sorry, sensei!" Kei said, starting to pick it up.

The teacher rushed over, ushering Kei out of the way. "Lee, the broom please. Don't touch the class, Kei. You just keep on doing the exercise and I'll clean up this little mess."

Fokou borrowed a popsicle from the table in front of them, the kids still snickering as they thought of Kei's horrified expression when she broke the glass beaker on their table. Fuu wasn't alone. He stuck the popsicle into the frame, drawing it out and examining it periodically, until he got a good impression. "Kei, you're such a klutz. I thought that you getting back into martial arts and getting on class teams in elementary school would have taught you a little bit of grace, but apparently not."

Her face went red. "Shut up!" she hissed.

Fukou snickered. "Make me. I'm higher than you, and bigger and taller…"

"That doesn't keep me from being able to still throw you over my shoulders and put a wrist lock on you, you sadistic little pervert." She tried glaring at him, but because of her blush, the effect was a slight failure. It was a good glare—a stupidly good glare which would normally have any sane man defending his precious goods—but she just looked _cute_ when she did it. Fuu laughed at her, and her glare only become more and more endearing.

Neji sat behind them. His science partner was distracted, and Neji held the stick in the flames, trying to get a burn impression. The boy glared at Fukou. How was that bastard so slick? He had sent Kei up to the roof thinking that she would come downstairs crying and saying that Fukou was a bastard she never wanted to see again, and who would be there waiting? Neji. Whose arms would she run into? Neji's. Who would she start to rely on? Neji. Who would she hate? Fuu. Who would she eventually open up to? Who would she blossom for? Who would be the object of her heart and soul? Neji, Neji, Neji.

And yet somehow that bastard could sit there, after Kei had finally seen the lying, cheating, using scumbag he was, and flirt with her and she would just get flustered and blush. 'Stop flirting with my woman!' he mentally growled.

"Neji! Neji! Earth to you, _asshole_!" Neji still didn't notice that he had been so busy glaring at the two people ahead at him that his popsicle stick had caught aflame. His lab partner was trying to get his attention, but it was failing. Panicking, he leaned over the desk and he looked at the teacher. "Mam! Neji!"

"NEJI!" the teacher bellowed, she saw what was going on, dropped the dust tray of glass she held to lunge and pull his hand out of the flame. Neji dropped the popsicle stick into the sink beside him, the teacher's hand firmly wrapped around his wrist. Luckily, he hadn't been burned.

The teacher sighed. One broken beaker and one flaming stick, both on only the second day of class. It was going to be a long year.

* * *

The following week, Fukou and Kei, despite all their conversation still had not brought up the two most sensitive of topics, the two things that they guarded knowing it was a weak spot. Fukou still had not asked Kei why she always whispered his name now, as if she were afraid saying it loudly would hurt him. Kei still had not said anything about what she had seen on the roof. As it was suddenly club week, all of the clubs of the school competing to gain students as if they were a precious commodity, and the students had only one week to join the clubs they wanted, there seemed to suddenly be little time for talking about anything but prospective clubs.

"Are you two going to join anything?" Shin asked, reading the pamphlet for the art club. The other three people in the group had already collected pamphlets at the club fair the school was hosting outside, as opposed to boring third period. They lounged beneath the tree that they seemed to have claimed as their own, but Kei and Fuu had displayed no interest in joining any clubs.

"I don't think so," Kei finally answered. "We've both already been in clubs in elementary and middle school. Why shouldn't we concentrate on our studies this year? Then we'll be able to get into a good university."

Shin arched an eyebrow and leaned over in Jou's direction, whispering. "You know, if they start spouting some crap about going to Tokyo U together and stuff, I think I'm going to be sick to my stomach." Jou laughed, which made the plump artist very happy. Normally Jou was the one who made people laugh, so when Shin was able to crack a joke and get a response, it made him feel very proud of himself.

Neji looked at the pamphlets he had collected. "I don't know. Some of these sound interesting. It might be fun, just in our first year. After all, the universities only look at our last year of marks to decide if they accept us or not, so who cares if we don't have the top marks the first year or two?"

"I do," Kei and Fuu both answered at the same time. They looked at each other, and the surprise turned into a determined—and yet somehow friendly—glare. It was the same expression they got when they were about to fight.

Jou, the closest friend to both Fukou and Kei, sighed and decided to join a club. If those two were actually going to fight for first place all year, then there was no way he was going to be able to get anywhere near the top, mark-wise. He might as well have some fun and join a club. 'Maybe I even get a scholarship or two,' the thought with a sigh.

Before the two sometimes-friends, mostly-rivals could place their exchange of expressions into a challenge or agreement, a shadow fell across their legs. Everyone clustered around the tree looked up to find the gym teacher staring down at them. He looked most displeased. Fuu was already starting to stand, hardly afraid of getting a detention or two, and about to pleasantly remind him that they weren't doing anything wrong, loitering under a tree. The teacher glared at Fuu, his blue eyes almost cold enough to make the green-eyed boy sit back down. "Are you Fukou?"

The awkward silence that had settled over their group became suddenly unbearable. His voice was filled with bristles as he spoke, a warning sign to all those who knew him well. He was like Wolfsbane, a predatory animal warning off another predator. Normally Fukou was just lonely looking, and often he could make himself intimidating, but when he did become this snarling, defensive wolf, he was just plain frightening. "I am."

The teacher either didn't understand that he was dealing with a teenager who would gladly take on anybody to defend his friends and their rights, or else he was too cocky to care. When Kei looked at him and saw that the teacher held himself the same way—almost exactly the same way—that their martial arts instructor did, she too was getting up. She placed her hand on Fuu's arm, trying to calm him down. "Fuu-sama…"

"Good morning, Kei," the teacher said sweetly, flashing her a brilliant smile. Both the teacher and Kei could hear Fuu's teeth grind together.

With his dark hair and bright blue eyes, the smaller, more compact body and the grace that came out in both body and language, Fukou knew that the teacher was a charmer. Fukou held the arm that Kei was grasping on to slightly behind him, trying to keep him protected.

Blinking, the teacher seemed surprised and then scratched his nose. He sniffled. 'Damn. This kid smells like that shit-face demon did five hundred years ago. It must just be my imagination. But, damn, does he acts like that little brat did too! Maybe this is Inuyasha reincarnated… only one way to tell, I suppose.'

"Why haven't you two signed up for my team yet?" he demanded. He looked at the little girl. "You, I seem to remember distinctly ordering to join up."

Fukou was confused. Kei sighed beside him, pushing past his arm. "He's my gym teacher, Fuu-sama, Miyaki-sensei."

Miyaki stood up a little prouder. As old as he was, getting recognition from a member of the opposite sex still did much to enlarge his pride ego. "That's right," he said, pointing a finger at Fukou. "And you two better march right over to that booth and sign up for my team! You two are top medalists and I'm not about to let either one of you get away, even if it means I'll have to forge your names!"

Fuu looked at the name of the club, and snorted. "I've already done that. Now that I'm in high school, I'm afraid that I have too much else to worry about. I don't have time to play fight with pipsqueak little boys anymore." He turned to walk away, but the teacher stopped him.

"School. I know. I've had to drag myself through that before, kid. But you two, you two are good, and talented. Think about it a little, boy. Harder fights, larger opponents, more fame, more glory…" Miyaki-sensei grinned, and then said the magic word. "Scholarships." Fuu turned around, and the gym teacher casually continued. "The world is your oyster with a scholarship or two under your belt. You could go to school anywhere you wanted. But if a little hard work bothers you…"

"I will… as long as Kei does too."

"Konseki-san!" she hissed, pinching him. He just took it with a stupidly pleasant grin on his face. He loved getting her mad. Kei looked at her teacher and sighed, shrugging. "Fine. I'll do it too."

She didn't tell anyone that the real reason why she didn't want to join up was because she had gotten sick and tired of all the teasing she had gotten about being the only girl in a club that fought. Her parents had said it was unladylike at first, but Kei had talked them around into it. It wasn't as hard to ignore the comments of the opposing teams. And thanks to the melding together of districts, now some of those opposing team members were on her side. But maybe with Fukou there it wouldn't be so bad.

'God,' she mentally groaned. 'What am I thinking? He'll probably be the one leading the chants and starting the teasing in the first place!'

* * *

Her father smiled at her when she said that she had decided to join the school team. He clapped her on the back before taking his seat at the head of the table. "We're very proud of you, Kei. I take it that Fuu will be joining you on the team, as well as some of your old friends?"

She nodded, but her mother interrupted her. "It's nice that you'll be making more friends, but shouldn't you be concentrating more on your homework? High school is very repetitive and…"

"If my grades start slipping beyond what's normal from going to middle to high school, I'll talk to Miyaki-sensei and I will quit the team. However, by being in a team like this, I can also have a good chance of scholarships." She took a sip of her soup, and so Kei didn't notice the expression that her parents exchanged. They had never once talked about the future after high school. Somehow, high school always seemed so far away that they thought they'd have plenty of time to plan for life after high school.

"Kei, have you ever had any thought on what you want to do after high school?" her mother asked her gently, watching her daughter's form suddenly freeze. Obviously the topic of what to do after high school was an uncomfortable one with her, though her mother didn't know why. She smiled. "Never mind. We'll discuss it later on. Honey, did anything good happen to you today?"

* * *

The next day at school, Kei was sitting unsuspectingly in science class when she realized just how serious the teacher had been when she had said that lab partners were inseparable. She assigned their first major assignment, and rather than randomly choose partners or allow students to select their partners, she said that they were to be partners with the person they worked with in a lab. Kei suddenly felt a bit of nervousness. Outside of the battlefield, working with Fukou as of late hate been making her feel self-conscious and clumsy. She became tongue-tied and… and there was nothing she could do.

Fukou smiled at her. He knew that she felt a bit of comfortable around him lately, and he'd been beginning to think that maybe she was feeling that way because of what she had seen on the roof. "At least if we work well together, we're going to do well on this project," he said encouragingly. "Do you want to go to the library tonight and maybe start doing a little bit of research? We can take books out and go to my house to read them, and then we have lessons afterwards." He grinned, unable to keep the secret any longer. "Yasha-sensei says that you get to start something new tonight."

"Really?" she demanded, her spirits suddenly lifted. "Like what? What do I get to start tonight?" Fuu laughed and refused to tell her, making her grab his arm and lean her head on his shoulder, rubbing her cheek against the fabric of his school uniform. "Please, Fuu-sama? Tell me? Please? I really want to know!"

Behind them, Neji was all but green from jealousy.

He laughed and she continued to egg on his good mood by being silly, by trying to pout and look cute and make him want to tell her. Trying to look cute always succeeded in making people laugh, because all they did was end up looking silly rather than cute. Every time Fuu looked over at her, she was pouting and batting her eyelashes and he snickered. Kei found she was having fun, and by the time the teacher had told them to settle down as this was "quiet time" Fuu was pink-cheeked. Kei just blamed it on the laughter.

* * *

AN: To be continued, as usual. Hopefully by the next chapter, Kei's cooking skills will have improved.


	10. She's a Rebel

Comrade in Arms

AN: Well, still won't let me access the reviews I got for the last chapter. Heck, it still won't let me access chapter eight! (_cries_) So once again there won't be any responses from me. But so long as you guys are able to read the chapters, and so long as I remember what chapter I really am on, I can't really complain. What brings on this chapter, you ask? My own happiness wanting to be shared with others. As I had no school yesterday, I finished writing the last few chapters of CiA. I'm warning you now, that I didn't cover every single plot twist or character flaw. There has to be something for them to be able to argue about in the future, and develop as they and their relationship continue to develop, after all. So now that I'm all done, it means I have the next two months to edit the last chapter like mad.

Because, really, if any one else read it right now, they think Kei had gone nuts.

So, lots of editing for me, and you guys just get to sit back and watch the fluff unfold! Enjoy, everyone!

_"Is she trouble/like I'm trouble  
make it a double/twist of fate  
or a melody that/She sings the revolution  
the dawning of our lives/she brings this liberation  
that I just can't define_

_She's a rebel /She's a saint  
She's salt of the earth  
And she's dangerous" _

_-_She's a Rebel, Green Day

* * *

Chapter Ten: She's a Rebel

The research project for science was due in the second semester. They had to find a famous scientist and create a forty minute presentation on them. Though they had a long time to do the project, both Fukou and Kei were perfectionists and they wanted to have the best presentation in the class. As far as they were concerned, second place was never good enough for them.

Kei slammed down the books on the table in the nearly empty library. Her stack of books was much larger than Fuu's. She glared at him. "My topic has more subject material. I say we do Madame Curie."

"Everybody is going to do Madame Curie," he groaned, pointing to the books. "I'm talking about the guy who invented dynamite here! We could totally get extra points by doing something like… Tchaikovsky's 1812 to pictures of things blowing up just to wow the class!"

Frowning, Kei dug into her pants pocket and pulled out a coin. "Fine. Since you are obviously too silly to realize the full potential of _my_ topic and too stubborn to change, we'll flip a coin. If you win, we'll do your topic, if it's mine, we do Madam Curie. Do you want heads or tails?"

Before he could answer, a new voice broke in the air. It was obviously feminine, a high and soft voice. It sounded easily excitable. Both Kei and Fuu looked up and were disappointed to see that it was the girl from the roof. Now Kei could see all of her rather than just a profile, and she had to admit that the girl really was beautiful. She had shining, thick hair, a delicate little nose and full lips that shimmered from lip gloss. Kei ducked behind the pile of books on the table a little, touching her own mouth and realizing she didn't even wear lip gloss with sunscreen in it to protect her lips. Then there was the girl's body. There was no way Kei would ever have a body like that without a lot of plastic surgery…

"Fuu-kun," the girl pouted, leaning on the table in such a way that her assets were best visible. "We didn't hang out today on the roof, and I was sad. I brought a special lunch today, made with all your favorite foods, and I didn't get to share it with you." He was now sitting on the chair, floored by the view she was giving him. She leaned over a little bit more, her hair brushing his cheeks as she hovered over him. She still pouted. "When will I get to see you again? I _miss_ you…"

"Ah, we'll see. I'm a little busy trying to work ahead in school work, because I want to make sure that when practices for Miyaki-sensei start, I won't be behind." Somehow Fukou was able to keep his cool under the scenario she was creating.

Kei didn't know how he did it or how she herself was going to keep from scaring the woman away from Fukou. She was glaring, and she couldn't stop. The last thing they needed was to get into a fight with some prissy princess and get banned from the library. She sat down in her chair, staring at the girl and wondering how long it would take her to notice that Fuu wasn't alone. Her teeth were starting to hurt from being clenched.

The other girl smiled. "I hear that you're taking biology. I can help you study for that, you know." She leaned in a little more, her open mouth hovering near his, and her tongue suddenly licked his bottom lip. Kei's lip rose in disgust. That had to be the nastiest thing that she had ever seen! However, it was obvious that Fuu liked it, as he began to smile very faintly. The smile refused to reach his eyes.

"We'll see. Until then, Kei and I were going to start doing a research project." He indicated Kei, and the girl turned to look at her. Rather than blushing that such moments of intimacy had been noticed by someone else, or even showing the slightest signs of regret for not speaking with him in private, she all but glared at Kei. Kei was more than happy to glare right back, finding herself in a foul mood. "I will call you."

"Do you promise?" the girl asked with another pout.

"I promise." With that promise and with another warning glare at Kei, the girl sauntered off. Fuu looked around, and saw that they were once again in privacy. He opened one of the books he had found on Alfred Nobel and he began to flip through it, looking rather bored. Kei knew he was just trying to avoid talking, and she herself began to look through another book. Finally, he turned to her. "We need to talk."

Kei nodded. "Agreed, but I don't really want to start."

"That's alright," Fuu said, sounding a little indifferent. "I'm willing to start. I know that you saw me up on the roof with the girl that just walked in here, and I think that I'd rather like to know why you haven't bitten my head off for it."

"Because if you want to go sticking your tongue down someone else's mouth, that's your decision," she snapped, looking up at him. Her grey eyes were wonderfully expressive, revealing that she was frustrated and mad. He didn't know when he had gotten so good at reading her that he could see though the small things she did to hide what she really felt, but he could tell that she was a little scared too. "Neji said that you were _something_ and it took me a long time to figure out what he meant. Sometime in the past, you became a player. That's why you were up on the roof with her, that's why you had all those girls following you and vying for your attention."

"If those girls…"

Kei cut him off with a simple wave of her hand. "I'm not asking you to justify yourself. Frankly, anything I hear will be bullshit. Poetic bullshit, but bullshit nonetheless. Save your lines for someone else, Fuu-sama. If you want to act like that, it's no business of mine. I just wish…." Her voice wavered a little and she smiled. "I just wish that if you felt you had to accept the fact that these women are obviously throwing themselves on you that you had told me. After all, aren't I one of the boys?"

He smiled a little. "I don't think you're really one of the boys as much as you are our little sister. We all know that you're obviously a girl, albeit a very tomboyish girl, and we're going to be right there to fight off boys who come to call on you because there's no boy that's good enough to date you."

Kei blushed deeply. She had never been told that she had was "obviously" a girl before. All she had ever heard was that she was a tomboy, that she was too masculine, that she acted like a boy, that her hair was too short for a girl's, that she didn't have feminine finger, that she would never be called beautiful, that she didn't have a feminine bone in her body. It never occurred to her that most of things had been said by people who were jealous of her, or by Fukou himself when he had been six years old, and therefore probably not true.

She smiled back in return, giving his forearm a small pinch. "I told you that it would be poetic bullshit." She let out a little sigh. "Please, just talk to me, tell me these things. It kind of worries me that you are doing things like this because in the end, someone is going to be hurt and I…"

"Don't want to see your fellow females being put down by a male?" he asked cheekily, recalling her fixation with arguing that the female sex was superior to the male sex. They'd had quite a few good arguments about that topic, many of them making Fukou laugh to himself when everyone was out of ear shot. Kei never knew just how much she brightened his day simply by being there.

Placing her small hand over top of his, her voice softened. Fukou thought it was odd. She sounded a little bit too mature for someone of fifteen years. Though Kei had always been mature for her age, this was a little bit different in some way which eluded him… She looked up at him, and for a brief second even her gaze seemed different. "I don't want to see you be hurt, Fukou."

'Nor do I want myself to be hurt…'

Which one of them pulled away first, neither one quite knew. They simply suddenly noticed that they were in a quiet, secluded part of the library and that they were holding hands. They both quickly snatched their hands back and turned in different directions until they were able to compose themselves. Fukou stared at his hand, and then he began to rub it hard, trying to get the feel of her warmth and skin out of his mind. It had felt like shocks running through his hand when she had touched him. His head throbbed.

And she had said his name. His _real_ name, not 'Fuu' or 'Fuu-sama'. His real name.

He'd never realized before that 'Fukou' had the possibility of sounding good, of sounding almost… musical. But in her soft, caressing voice, it had. God, he'd almost been able to feel the words in the air, to feel the affection they had for him. Affection was new to him, and he was more than happy to share it amongst friends. After all, weren't friends allowed to be affectionate? Oh, he wished that she would say it again.

"Sorry," Kei said quietly, her hand gripping her knee so she wouldn't reach out to him again. "I shouldn't have called you that, Fuu-sama."

'But it sounded nice,' he protested. 'I almost wish you'd say it again. Why do you have to be so formal with me? You're my friend, my fighting partner…'

"If you wouldn't mind telling me though… how exactly did you get such a name?" She hoped she wasn't being rude for asking. She'd already told him how she felt about it, but she was still curious as to how it had happened.

He took a deep breath and turned enough in his chair so that he could see her. It didn't seem odd to be leaning his shoulder against hers and talking to her in a smooth, deep voice. It felt rather calming. Odder still was how being around Kei not only made him feel relaxed, but energized, filled with desire to be happy and do good… and be so totally unlike the man he appeared to be.

"My parents were dating for a year, fooling around. Accidents happen, that's why condoms aren't a hundred percent safe, why packages of contraceptives _say_ that they aren't a hundred percent effective. I was the result of my parents not taking enough precautions. My father blamed it all on my mother, saying that she was… well, never mind what he said. But because I was an accident, because I was never meant to be, he named me…"

"That's not true, Fuu-sama!" She spun around and looked at him, leaning into his space. Her grey eyes were passionate, the color back on her face. "If you weren't meant to be here, then neither was I! You and I belong together! You're my best friend, and if I ever hear you say anything like that again, then I will drag you outside and throttle you within an inch of your life just for being _stupid_! I've never been the most religious person, and you know that, but I strongly believe that God doesn't make mistakes, and so if you were reborn into this world, you're here for a reason! So… so _there_!"

After that, he agreed to do Madame Curie.

* * *

A little over a month later, Kei was still reeling from the lessons she'd been having with Inuyasha. For the first time, despite the fact that she was still new and regardless oh how much "natural ability" she had in fighting, he had led her hold a weapon. Her arms had been aching for days afterwards, the authentic staff he had her using being far heavier than the ones on school teams. But still… it meant that she was improving, if she was getting to use weapons. She was horrible with the staff, and was getting a lot of extra coaching from Fukou.

As for their school club, they had spent a lot of time working on gaining speed and feet work, unlearning the clumsier moves taught by their elementary schools and learning whole new styles by Miyaki-sensei. At first her teammates had been angry and aggressive when they found out there was going to be a girl on a team which, for years, had been all male. However, once they had gotten into a few scuffles after school and Kei had proved herself, they backed away.

Fukou had tried to defend her, which surprised her. He hadn't defended her since the day they had been accosted by students several years older than them. When he had stepped between her and the students that had meant to scare her away, she wasn't quite sure if she felt happy because he was till watching out for her and proving to be quite reliable when it came to the pinch, or if she was insulted that he didn't let her fight her own battles.

But a month after that conversation in the library, it was once again Jou's birthday, and there was a large party for the celebration. The cake having been served, and everyone feeling rather silly and dizzy from the carbonated drinks, they started up a game of truth or dare. Kei was the last person to agree to join in, and when she did so, it was only with the resolution that her friends promised not to do something at which they knew she would take offense.

On Kei's third turn, she once again picked truth, and her friends let out a grown. "Come on, Kei-chan!" Shin said, unable to think up another question he could ask her. "There's not much left to ask without getting into the fun details like the things you or girls in general fantasizes about, or how you like to be kissed, or locker room details!"

"Or the type of illicit undergarments you own or would want to own," Neji continued, dodging a friendly punch from Fuu. At least, most people present thought it was only friendly natured.

"Fine," she sighed. She didn't want to be a stick in the mud. "I'll pick dare."

Jou suddenly grinned and leaned over, whispering to Shin. He knew exactly what dare to give her, and Shin agreed. The turns were passed, and Kei was told that she would find out her dare within a few turns. Sure enough, within a few turns Fukou chose a dare, knowing that Jou gave great dares. His imagination seemed limitless at times.

"Your dare, Fuu, is to go into the closet for seven minutes… with Kei."

Kei did not want to go. No doubt her friends were not just curious as to who would survive being in such tight enclosure with someone who always egged them on and always picked on each other—at least in the private sphere—but she also suspected that Shin and Jou had planned this in the hopes that the dare would turn into seven minutes in heaven. It wasn't being alone with Fukou that bothered her, it was that she didn't like enclosed spaces.

Kei's hair was getting longer, and now she was able to play with it when she got nervous. She did so now, unaware of how small she suddenly seemed, despite the muscle that lined her form. Nor was she aware of how cute she looked, how much her sweet nature made them want to protect her, or how envious Neji and Fukou suddenly were, wishing that they could brush her growing hair.

"I guess I can…"

She didn't really remember walking to closet, or getting in it, all she remembered after that was suddenly feeling very warm and panicking because of the darkness that closed in on her. Her breathing was labored, and for whatever reason, she suddenly couldn't pick up on the scent of mothballs or Fukou's shampoo, but dirt. Fresh, overturned, deep soil. Her teeth clattered, and the noise surprised her. She jumped, looking around for the sound of the chattering noise, and bit her tongue to keep from screaming when Fuu's hands closed in around her shoulders.

"Are you all right?" He felt stupid after he asked it. She was panicking, so obviously she wasn't all right.

"Y… yes…" she stuttered. She felt him move closer, and the heat from his body only made her more nervous. "F… Fuu-s…sama…"

He frowned. The idea had left a bad taste in his mouth since it had been proposed. No doubt she was afraid—the way her body shook and the chattering of her teeth were obvious signs of fear—because she thought he was going to try and seduce, try to kiss her. He admitted to himself—only to himself, because he guarded those few times he thought about Kei romantically as being dangerous moments of pure gold—that he _had_ thought about it. But he didn't want to be like that with Kei. He didn't want to see Kei being contaminated by the lust of the women that he had already experienced in his life. She was too good to be manipulated like that.

It was the old double entendre. He could love Kei as a friend, but never as anything more because he respected her too much. He didn't want to see her the way he had seen other girls because he wanted her to remain unblemished.

"Don't worry," he said, holding back the stinging bitterness that tried to enter his voice. "I'm not going to try and take advantage of you, Kei-san."

"It's not t…that. I… I'm scared, F…Fuu-sama," she chattered. Kei wrapped her arms around herself. Once again, the voice that Fukou had heard in the library came out. "B…Being in a place like this m…makes me t…think of being in a grave. I…it's like a story I read o…once. Being… being in p…" She took a deep breath and said it in a rush of waord. "P…pain 'both physical and emotional, and then to wake up and discover that you can't breath, that you can't see and there is a weight pressing you into a gritty pillow and suffocation'. T…that's what I feel like."

Her voice sounded a little panicked. He wrapped his arms around her, drawing her close. Slowly, her chattering calmed down, and the warmth that she had felt became soothing, the smell of the fresh dirt slowly ebbing away. All she could smell was him, and he was familiar and comforting.

Fuu groped above him, knowing there was a light fixture somewhere. He found it, and the sudden light nearly blinded them. Clothes hung around them, piles of shoes squished into a corner by their feet, and Kei relaxed more. Now that she could see that she wasn't in the earth, she felt a little bit better.

Gently stroking her black hair, he gazed down at her. "Konseki-san… if you don't mind my asking, why are you claustrophobic?"

"I… I'm not, not really. I mean, now that the light's on, I feel much better." She took a deep breath and managed to smile. "It's being in an enclosed space in the dark, in the warmth, or underground… things like that bother me. I'm afraid of caves. I have nightmares about being buried alive. I don't now why though."

"Well, I would have thought that being buried alive would be a normal nightmare."

She didn't respond to his comment. Her hair fell away from her now serene face as she looked up at him. "Please don't tell anyone else about my secret. I don't want them to think I'm silly, especially because my fears seem so unwarranted. Maybe if I had fallen into a grave when I was little, or had a big brother who locked me into closets it would make more sense, but I have no reason to be afraid of those things… and yet I do. I fear them very much." Her arms tightened around him, her head leaning into his hand and he continued to brush her hair in soothing motions.

His face serious as he nodded, but behind his glasses his green eyes seemed more than just a little happy. So too, did they seem a little compassionate. Her hair was smooth, her body still soft despite her well-built form. "If I tell them, then you can tell them about my biggest fear."

"What's yours?"

"The wind." She looked up at in surprise, rather than in pleading, and he nodded again. "I'm perfectly serious, Kei. I am terrified of the wind. Maybe it was because of that storm that made me sick as a little kid, but the wind terrifies me. I hear it sometimes, tearing around the corner of my house and it sounds to me like it's after me. The wind can be so devastating, and yet how many people enjoy it, enjoy the way it makes their hair float or feel it try to pick them up as they walk along? But those winds, the kind that gusts, it scares me. And I don't know why."

She buried her face into his grey turtleneck and she breathed in deeply. He was being so quiet. He was usually so quiet. Remembering how she had come in and found him lounging on the couch, wearing tight blue jeans and a grey turtleneck, a wheel on a necklace around his neck, and a leather jacket, she wondered about him. He always put out the appearance of being a tough guy, of being sullen and quiet… and deep down he was so full of life! Why did he feel like he had to hide it unless he was amongst his friends?

She placed a hand over his chest, over the silver wheel that hung from the silver chain around his neck. Silver looked good on him, but so did the two gold earrings he had gotten over the summertime. Her fingers traced the spokes of the wheel. She didn't know he was so religious—maybe spiritual was the better word, she then wondered—to wear a symbol of Buddhism.

"Have you ever thought…" she said very quietly, her voice slightly muffled by his shirt, "…about reincarnation..."

Before she could finish, Jou pulled open the door, and they jumped apart, blushing deeply. Everyone thought that the reason why they had both been so red-faced was because they had been kissing and were ashamed about being caught. No one knew what really had gone on in the closet that day, and quite frankly, they were happy to have it that way.

* * *

In early January the first round of fights were going to be held at the school. Practices for the team were stepped up to four meetings a week, and with their additional lessons with Yasha-sensei, Kei and Fuu were getting the workout of their lives. They began spending more and more time with each other, working on their homework in groups. While at first their parents hadn't been to happy with this arrangement, as they didn't want their children depending on each other through high school to only be devastated when the tough processes to get into university would leave them separated.

Until then, at least, Kei and Fuu were tired, but very happy.

"Kei! Fuu! Break's over! It's your turns! Let's see what you two can do," barked Miyaki-sensei. He watched as the two of them put down their homework and jumped up, eagerly heading to the front of the gym to fight. They sunk down into their stances, and the fight began when he gave the command. He sat back and watched, approving. Kei had gotten much better, and their techniques had been reformed quite a bit.

For a long time he had thought that they were such good fighters because they had been trained by Inuyasha, or Yasha-sensei, as they called him. But eventually Miyaki Kouga had learned that Yasha and _Inu_yasha were not the same person. Kei and Fuu showed none of the same moves that he recalled Inuyasha using on him as they fought over Kagome. In fact, they fought much more like Sango and Miroku.

Eventually, Kouga had clued in, with the help of his wife. They were the reincarnations of Sango and Miroku. Kouga suddenly felt very conscious of the things he said and did around them. If they didn't know who they were, if they didn't recognize him because those memories remained separate from their minds, there was a reason for it. Maybe it was because something tragic had happened, maybe it was because they weren't old enough to deal with some of the things they had seen in their life, or maybe people who were reincarnated weren't supposed to remember anything at all to give them a new life. Whatever the reason, Ayame had pounded into his mind, he was to do nothing to "help" them remember, no matter how good his intentions.

He watched them fight, not doing anything as Kei fell away from battle and Fuu launched a flying kick at her. This was what they had been trained to do, this was how they fought together, not just testing each other out, but finding out their own limits as well. He was, however, shocked when Kei's reaction was to grab the foot before it struck her and throw all her weight on Fukou, pushing him to the ground.

Damn it, his back was still hurting from when Inuyasha had used that move on him. Kouga unconsciously rubbed his back. He was going to pay a visit to the shrine that night, and make certain that Inuyasha wasn't back in town after having disappeared five hundred years ago.

* * *

As soon as he was within two hundred feet of the shrine, he could smell the familiar stench. Kouga had never quite gotten over Kagome and Inuyasha becoming involved. Some part of him still felt bitter that Inuyasha had been picked by Kagome, leaving behind the age old question of 'why him over me'. He walked up the steps of the shrine. 'If I hadn't still been recovering from taking on Naraku myself, I might have been able to woo Kagome.'

"You!" He didn't have time to duck out of the way as Inuyasha came barreling at him. It was odd to see the half-demon dressed in jeans and wearing a red dress shirt, with his hair pulled back with a hair elastic and a bandanna hiding his ears. Inuyasha grabbed Kouga's jean jacket, lifting the smaller man to his tip-toes. "What are you doing here?" he snarled, his fangs visible from his sneer. Kouga's eyes, however, were on Inuyasha's feet. He grinned when he saw that Inuyasha didn't wear socks or shoes. "Oy! What are you laughing at, wolf!"

Emerging from the house and seeing Inuyasha accosting a perfect stranger, Kagome sighed. "Yasha, it's times like this I wish I could just tell you to sit and watch you fall down!" she shouted, approaching. There was something a little familiar about the man's blue eyes… it suddenly dawned on her, and she placed her hand on Inuyasha's stomach, her voice gentle but filled with respect. "Inuyasha, kindly put Kouga-kun down."

He put the wolf-demon down only because hearing his _wife_ all him 'Kouga-_kun_' had shocked him into dropping the demon. He spun on Kagome, sputtering, "You're still calling him _that_?" She nodded and he kept yelling. "Why? You're married! He's married, or at least he _was_ married to Ayame and you're calling him affectionate nicknames?"

"Friends do that, even when they haven't seen each other in years," she said. Kagome stepped forward and hugged Kouga. The full demon hugged her back tightly, and she looked up at him, patting his cheek. "You've aged well, Kouga-kun. Why don't you come in and have a cup of tea?" She looked down at the hands on her shoulders and spotted a gold ring. "I want to hear how you and Ayame have been holding up."

Inuyasha didn't understand why they were being so friendly after so long. Kagome very much doubted that he was able to understand. He was too stubborn to stop thinking as Kouga as a potential enemy for Kagome's heart and start thinking of him as a friend. Kouga, as soon as he saw Kagome, knew that he didn't have a claim to her anymore. She was married to Inuyasha, and he wasn't going to dishonor that union. Nor did he really still feel bitter about not getting picked as her husband. He had a wife he had come to love dearly, and he was a natural friend to Kagome, just as the way things should have been.

* * *

When he went home, he found Ayame in the kitchen, her nose stuck in a textbook of advanced calculus. She smiled at wearily, her eyes barely leaving the page. No doubt their youngest son had been asking for help again as he tried to understand theoretical mathematics, and so Ayame was brushing up on her favorite subject. "There's supper in the microwave for you. Just hit start."

She brushed her red hair over her shoulder, and yawned before pulling the blankets tighter around her. Her voice was sleepy. "Don't you think it's amazing we've advanced so much to be able to calculate things like the weight of an asteroid hurtling to Earth so long as we have the…"

Ayame was cut off as Kouga ignored the food in the microwave and grabbed his wife's shoulders, pulling himself down to kiss her passionately. Ayame was taken by surprise, but as she gave into the unexpected kiss and wrapped her arms around her husband, she could feel her insides start to melt. How long had it been since Kouga had been this passionate with her? When he tried to pull away, she bit his bottom lip, eliciting a growl from him as she teased his body and his masculinity. No real wolf would allow her to tease him like that, or challenge him.

Kouga picked her up and swiped off the kitchen table with his free arm as she kissed him back intensely. The book clattered to the floor as the table was cleaned off and Ayame was pinned to it. She let out a muffled sound of surprise when his hand landed on her breast, slipping under her shirt and massaging her skin. Kouga's lips released hers and she chuckled. "I missed you," he said.

Her cheeks were pink, and she suddenly felt like a young demon again, barely two centuries old. She looked up at him, fingering ears that were still slightly pointed. "Does this mean that Kagome-chan's back in town and you've finally cleared everything up?"

Often they had discussed Kouga's feelings for the priestess, and he had always been forced to admit that he still wondered if he loved her or not. To him, Kagome was always the girl who had gotten away. Ayame liked Kagome. She could see why her husband would like the young lady, as human as she was, but Ayame never begrudged the fact that she had married Kouga for political gains rather than from love.

She knew, even if he didn't, that it was love that made his kisses soft when she was sad, that it was love that made him dote upon their children and protect their clans no matter what. She knew too, that it was love that made their bed warm at night and their bodies intertwine even if they were both too hot. He wanted to protect her because he loved her, he had just never been ready to admit to either of them how much he loved her.

Kouga was proud, and if he had acknowledged that it was Ayame that held his heart in his hands when he had offered it to Kagome, he would feel like a liar. He needed one last moment with Kagome to make sure that she didn't want it and make sure that he _was_ happier with Ayame. The kiss Kagome had given him on his cheek when she said hello had told him everything he needed to know. He was a missed friend, someone strong she could rely on when Inuyasha was away, and she cared for him. Her heart, as she had always tried to tell him, had been given to another.

Yet, he kissed his wife again, he grew frustrated as she teased him with her stubbornness and childishly giggled at him, and he thought. His kisses become thirstier for the beautiful sighs of pleasure she rewarded him with when they made love. She made Kouga wonder if he had ever really offered his heart to Kagome at all.

* * *

To be continued, as usual. And as a side note here, because I know some of you will be wondering about Kei's decision to not throttle Fuu over the head with the biggest library book she can find: as the reader, you have been offered a unique perspective into the foundations of this relationship. You know what both of them think. Kei doesn't. She doesn't know what exactly it is Fukou thinks about women, that he thinks the only thing they want is physical adoration and that they will try to trap him into staying with him. From Kei's perspective (with the women at the fight two or three chapters ago, and with this girl here who instigates the flirtation with Fuu) she thinks that they are coming on to him.

Therefore she doesn't beat him for being a sexist jerk because she doesn't know how he really feels about girls. But we do, so if anyone wants to pick on him in the reviews, I won't hold it against you.

And I suppose some of you are wondering how that conversation works at developing their relationship. We get to see how he feels about Kei. He does care about her. He worships the ground she walks on, but he won't say anything because he's afraid if he gets too close to her, she's going to turn out to be just like all the other girls he had met. And you have to agree that Kei acting like the girl who came up to Fukou in the library is most OOC:) See you later!


	11. How do I Live?

**Author's Notes:** After much debating, I added an entirely new section to this chapter. Reflecting upon the story, I didn't like the fact that neither of them ever had a first crush that they had to get over; if they did in one of the large gaps between events of each chapter, then it obviously wasn't mentioned. I didn't like that, and so I decided to add in Fu's first crush. It's just a little bit… there's not much to it. I think it lacks any depth whatsoever and that it interrupts the flow of the rest of this chapter, but I think that it also helps to ease him out of the anti-girl mind he has going on because Kei is there to help him through it, and I think it also helps to push the two of them together a little bit more.

Maybe I might make up a new chapter where Kei has her heart broken by her first love, but that's unlikely. I think it would interrupt the flow of the story too much. I risked it with Fuu, and hopefully, I somewhat succeeded.

Ninalee-chan, you mentioned in your review that Fuu needed to have a talk with his mom. I think he will within the next Fuu chapters, but we won't get to see it at all. If my Muse lets me, hopefully I will get to write it in. I completely agree with the points you made. I don't know why I didn't think of that. It sounds so obvious. Maybe my muse was too focused on the fluff. I will try to tackle such a difficult topic!

Iggy: At this point, their fears aren't reawakening. As I said earlier, the fears that they manifest now are things that affected them so deeply in their first life that they still bear the scars of it on their souls. For Kei, that fear is being buried alive. For Fuu, Mirok is buried deep inside his mind, and he refuses to have even the slightest little bit be reawakened. His fear of the wind, however, could just as easily be a fear of the kazaana as it could have been the storm he went out into to find Kei and in which he caught pneumonia. Every little thing in their lives which could be a part of their old selves or their old memories returning doesn't always mean it is. (_smiles and huggles you_)

Heysuesista: It came out early because it was part of my celebration for finishing it.

Fred the mutant Pickle: As far as I can recall, it'll be aaround 26 chapters long… more if I find plot holes along the way and I need to fill things in to make it a complete story!

Thanks for all the reviews! Enjoy this chapter, folks! It's extra long, but beware of angst up ahead!

"How do I,  
Get through one night without you?  
If I had to live without you,  
What kind of life would that be?  
Oh, I need...  
I need you in my arms, need you to hold,  
You're my world, my heart, my soul."

-Leanne Rimes, "How do I Live?"

* * *

Chapter Eleven: How do I Live?

"Kitsune-kun?"

Jou turned, surprised to have heard Kei use her old nickname for him. He put down the book he was reading as he lounged in the library and gave her a warm smile of friendship in greeting. It was nice to know that though Fukou seemed to be having a monopoly with Kei that they were both friends. Perhaps Fuu was becoming a better friend, but Jou was still her oldest companion.

"Yes, Angel?"

Kei sat down next to him. Her cheeks were bright pink, and her hands felt clammy. She couldn't believe what she was going to ask, but she really did want to know. Kei wanted to take control of the situation, and if that meant she actually had to come to Jou and ask him something so embarrassing that she would do it… She lowered her eyes, her voice quiet in the empty library.

"Kitsune-kun… I was wondering… as of late, I've seen a lot of people kissing and I…" She blushed, and Jou had to agree. Spring fever had struck the school, and it was nearly impossible to go anywhere without the other students showing some kind of affection to each other. It made Jou feel a little lonely, as he had nobody interesting in him. "And," she continued, "it's just that I've never been kissed, so…"

"Never?" he asked, arching an eyebrow. His eyes danced as he thought to the perfect set up that Shin and he had made for Fukou and Kei and laughed heartily. "Damn. I thought that it would have worked too. Shin and I expected that you'd know you had a moment of privacy and that you'd just grab Fuu and start making out with him."

Her cheeks darkened even more, and she looked a little indignant that Jou ever thought she would be so forceful as to actually grab someone and kiss them. "Well, that wasn't the case. All we did was talk, because he's my friend and that's what friends do. But you are also my friend, and… and I think that, ah, if you don't have a problem with it, Kistune-kun, would you give me my first kiss?"

Jou stared at her in shock, and feeling uncomfortable, her blush deepened even further. She played with the hem of her uniform skirt, lowering her eyes. "It's probably wrong of me to ask, but it's just that I want my first kiss to be with someone special, not out of something like truth or dare or because of something silly like spring fever. You're my friend, you have been since I was little…" She stopped as she remembered once, when she was very little, giving Fuu's lips a little kiss, but she doubted that truly counted. She had been too young to really know what she had been doing. "And friends kiss, so…"

His hand covered hers, and he leaned in. Jou didn't ask why she wanted him to kiss her. He doubted very much that Kei had suddenly woken up and had found that she was head over hills in love with him. As selfish as it sounded, he didn't want to give up this opportunity. Who knew when he would get a chance to kiss Kei again. Kei hadn't told anyone that the other day she had walked by an empty classroom and had found Fuu with a different girl, their lips locked tightly together, his hands on her as she tried to keep herself supported.

She didn't know why it hurt, and she didn't know why all these people liked kissing so much. So Kei had figured that maybe if she had a real kiss then maybe she would understand.

His lips touched hers gently, warm and soft. Kei tried not to think, not to calculate or wonder why this was supposed to feel so good, when it didn't really feel… like anything. How was this touch supposed to be any different from holding hands, or from a clap on the back? His lips moved against hers slowly, his hand brought up to caress her cheek and draw her a little closely, his fingertips barely touching her hair. Her body relaxed against his and they fell back on the chair, his fingers lacing in her dark hair. His nose brushed hers and she giggled, her mouth opening slightly. Kissing felt funny, and it made her laugh. Why didn't she see more people laughing when they were kissing?

Jou didn't know how far to take it. Was this what she had wanted? Kei tasted very good, and he wondered when she had begun to wear chap stick. She tasted a little like raspberries. His lips lingered over hers for a moment and she slowly froze, her giggle stopping in her closed throat. She pulled away as if his touch had burned her, her gray eyes wide. Her hand quickly covered her open mouth, her cheeks as dark as the red chairs they lounged on.

"That… that's a kiss?" She sounded very surprised, and Jou felt a little guilty when he nodded. She stared at him, and then her hand fell away. She smiled at him. "Thank you, Kistune-kun." Kei kissed him softly on the cheek. She smiled again. "It was as awkward for you as it was for me, wasn't it?"

"Yes," he laughed, feeling quite relieved. He licked his lips, tickling her side. "You tasted good, Angel, but I felt like I was kissing my sister!"

"Good!" Kei squealed, fighting him off. "I felt like I was kissing a brother! And your tongue was all slimy!"

He arched an eyebrow. "Oh yeah?"

"Yea!" Her response turned into another squeal when he licked her neck, and she told him he was gross, convulsing with laughter. She smacked him, drying off her neck as he continued to agitate her by making kissing noises until they ended up getting kicked out of the library because their laughter was disturbing the "other students". Neither of them had felt like pointing out to the delusional librarian that they were the only students in the library.

* * *

It wasn't very long until Kei found out just how serious it was with the girl from the English classroom. Soon, Fuu had invited her to come and sit with them at lunch under their tree. Fukou never asked any of the girls he hung out with to come and sit with them during lunch. Instead they were usually secreted away…

Half hidden by Shin and his sketchbook, Kei glared a little at their entwined hands. She had never seen Fukou reciprocate a girl's touch before, not like that. He was holding her hand, and he was almost smiling about it. His eyes certainly were happier than normal. She felt a little…

"You must be Konseki-san!" she said cheerfully, offering Kei her free hand in greeting. Kei was disturbed by her thoughts, and shook the hand in a kind of daze. The pretty girl—Kei noted with satisfaction that this girl wore the school skirt at proper length and did not have an inch of paint on her face like some of Fuu's old "girlfriends" did—smiled at her, and Kei had to smile back. "Fuu-sama never stops talking about you."

"He… he doesn't?" she wondered, looking up at him. To her surprise, he was blushing.

"No. Whenever I see him after one of his school club meetings and I ask him how training went, he's always telling me how much you're improving, or how you pulled some amazing move to defeat _your_ uke, your opponent." This time, it was Kei's turn to blush, but the happy girl continued. "It's really quite annoying. Once he starts talking about you, it's rather hard to get him to stop. Oh, don't get me wrong, I mean, it's wonderful to hear stories of his childhood vicariously though stories about you, but I've heard about how you were afraid of Wolfsbane five times already this week."

Her hand slipped from Fuu and the girl sat down in an empty spot next to Kei. She wiggled her eyebrows comically. "I don't suppose you'd mind retaliating with stories of him from your childhood, would you?"

Kei laughed.

* * *

"She talks a lot," Neji complained as they watched Fuu and his new girlfriend come out for yet another lunch time with them.

Shin shrugged. "I don't mind. We don't usually talk that much during lunch hour anyway. It's nice to have someone else here to talk so we don't have to." He paused, looking at his drawing and trying to figure out what was wrong with it. Kei leaned over his shoulder and saw he had done a picture of her kicking as he tried to work on getting muscle structure right.

"You know," the young artist thought suddenly, "she kind of reminds me of Kei-chan here."

Kei laughed and pinched the shoulder on which she leaned. "You mean that I talk a lot?"

Jou decided it was best he joined in, completely agreeing with Shin. "No. You're quiet. Unless you're mad, in which case you're loud, but brief. She just rambles, as nice as she is. I think, honestly, she makes him happy because she's so giggly. But she does act like you in _how_ she speaks. She teases him, she's kind of witty, she's open and frank with him, and she's very polite. She _did_ greet you as Konseki-san…"

"True," Kei said. She sighed, looking down at the picture. "I like her too, but I can't help but shake off a bad feeling about this…"

"Maybe you're jealous," Jou teased.

Kei glared at him over Shin's sketchbook, and then she pointed at it and looked pleadingly down at Shin. "Can you please, please, please, put Jou in there so I can have a picture of me kicking him in the head?"

* * *

It was only a few weeks later that Fuu missed school. Kei had sat by herself in math class, looking at his empty seat and wondering where he was. Normally, if he knew he was going to be missing class because of a doctor's appointment or something, he told her, that way she could take extra careful notes for him.

Returning to the conversation at hand, Kei continued taking diligent notes, rather than her own sparse examples. She easily understood the math concepts they were being taught, and found it a waste of paper, but she knew that Fukou would want to see the process step by step. She'd drop them off at his house after school, and then she'd see what the problem was.

* * *

Whatever Kei had prepared herself for—the flu, playing hooky, whatever—she was not quite prepared for the truth. He refused to let her inside the house.

"Go away, Kei!"

"Please, Fuu-sama! Let me in!" she pleaded as she stood outside the door. He made the mistake then of looking through the peep hole and seeing just how vulnerable she looked. Her cute school uniform was hither-thither from biking so fast, her long hair windblown, her grey eyes wide, and her knapsack clutched to her chest. "I'm worried!"

She was telling the truth. He forced himself to open the door, knowing that she just wanted to make sure he was okay. She wasn't going to laugh at him, or mock him, or spread word around the school that Fukou Aisowotsukasu, the great impenetrable block of ice, had been hurt by a girl. He shut the door behind her, and she gasped when she saw his state. He felt like he had been put through the washer, and he just about looked it too.

"We broke up," he admitted.

"Oh, Fuu," she sighed, setting down her knapsack and hugging him tightly. She slipped out of her shoes and he led her to the couch, where they curled up together. Kei leaned into the corner of the couch, her arms wrapped around his shoulders and her head leaning against his, their dark hair blending together. He snuggled into her, surprised in his grief to find her warm and soft.

He didn't ever recall cuddling with her before, and never like this… but it felt… good… and natural.

"I really liked her, Kei," he said, his hands clinging to hers. "I really did. But then she dumped me. She was just using me to get back at her old boyfriend. Why would she do something like that? Why couldn't I have seen it coming? I mean, she was such a nice girl… I should have been suspicious of her right from the very beginning!"

His hand tightened a little bit on her arms and she made soothing noises, brushing her cheek against his smooth hair. "Shhh. No, Fuu, you shouldn't have been suspicious of her. We all liked her. We all thought she was a good person. Appearances can just be deceiving. This is probably what those girl you date feel like, you know, when you break up with them."

"Then I'm never dating again!"

"No, don't say that. We both know that's not true. People get hurt, and you just want to keep from getting hurt. That's why you break up with your girlfriend before they can break up with you, right? That, I think, is a little natural. No one likes being hurt. Your girlfriends, Fuu-sama, will come and go… but you'll always have me."

He made a sound of disbelief. Lifting her head, she smiled down at him. "No. I'm telling you the truth. You'll always have me, Fuu, so long as you want me."

* * *

As it always seemed to happen, the year's biggest tournament for Kei and Fukou came around the same time as exams. Often, Fukou was starting to sleep over more at Kei's house, sleeping on the couch and biking with her to school the next day. Her parents didn't mind at all, as even her mother was quick to agree that Fukou had become a charming young man, always polite. When he slept over, he always helped to do the dinner and breakfast dishes, and he always had the living room back to perfect order by the time that Mrs. Konseki had gotten out of bed.

Her father often teased Kei why she didn't go and sleep over at Fuu's house, which he claimed would have made more sense as she went there after school anyway to hang around with him until class. Though as of late, Inuyasha's classes had been becoming more sporadic. Often he would disappear for two weeks at a time, claiming that his family needed his help, though he would not mention where he or his family was going. His young daughter, Kaede, would be left with her grandmother during these periods, though often she went with them for the weekend.

Fuu only ever smiled and said that Kei's house was quieter and thus more effective for studying.

"I'm a little sad that Yasha-sensei isn't going to be here to watch us. I've never made it this far before," he said quietly on the day of the National competition. He looked behind him at all of the bleachers full of people and Kei thought she saw him gulp down his fear. "Has he ever been to one of your competitions?"

"No, but we have our family and our friends here," Kei said thoughtfully, smiling up at their own personal cheering section. Overhead, the sun was bright and started to sink down into the horizon, but even that didn't help the fact that it was humid and _hot_ outside. Kei's water bottle was almost halfway gone, and she hadn't even started fighting yet. Why they had to plan the competition for the hottest day of the year, she would never understand.

She patted his knee reassuringly. "And we have Miyaki-sensei that we have to make proud. I'm just a little nervous, though, because I've never been to a meet like this one before. You know my form isn't very good, Fuu-sama. I don't think I'm going to make it very far, not if we're being judged individually, rather than a team. But I figure that as long as I am the second last one knocked out of our school's team, then I'm doing just fine and I'll be happy. Because we already know that you're going to take first."

"Way to put pressure on me," he grumbled. Kei merely smiled at him a moment longer, as the competition began.

Sure enough, Kei and Fukou were the second last and last people of their school to be eliminated. Their friends and family had gone nearly hoarse cheering for them, even poor Wolfsbane. Their school took third place in the overall competition, and Mayaki-sensei was so happy he looked around all of his students. "Okay!" he shouted, grabbing his red-headed wife and looking at his students. "We're all going out for pizza! All those coming with us in the van, follow me! Parents are welcome to come along, but I'm paying for all of my kids!"

Kei and Fuu looked at their parents, Fuu triumphantly polishing the bronze medal hanging around his neck. He wasn't sure if what made him prouder was the fact that his dad had actually told him that he had done well, or if it was the stupidly happy smile plastered on Kei's face. He felt like a million dollars right then. His own face was starting to hurt from smiling back at her. "Can we go with them? Please?"

"Hon," his mother said, stroking his hair and handing him back his glasses, "your father has to go to work early tomorrow morning. I think that…"

"Don't worry about it," Kei's father said, coming to Fuu's rescue. "We can take him with us in our car and then you two can go home and get the rest you need. He can even sleep over at our house tonight, as I'm sure that our children want to study a little bit more before they have to sit through their exams tomorrow morning."

They were both a little hesitant, but agreed. They all climbed into Mr. Konseki's car, and Fukou felt nervous when he realized that Kei still hadn't stopped staring at him as they drove away from the outside arena. "What?" he asked, feeling confused.

"I guess that I can't help but by a little jealous of you," she said, the radio in the front hiding their conversation from her parents. "The top three people get to go to the world wide competition. It's being held in Greece this year. You get to spend all summer in Greece, all expenses paid, with one of your parents. You have to promise to take a lot of pictures for me."

"My, it certainly is hot, isn't it?" Kei's mother asked, fanning herself as they followed Kouga's mini-van to the local pizza place. "It's not a good day for driving, that's for certain."

"Why not?" Kei asked from the backseat. She didn't know what the heat had to do with anything.

Her mother smiled over her shoulder. "Because Kei, when it's hot people have short tempers. That's when people suffer the most from road rage. Fuu-kun, have you started thinking about driving yet? You are a few months older than Kei, so you would be taking your test first…"

The topic was changed, and they had a nice, normal conversation. Fuu's good mood had returned. Somehow, the idea of leaving Japan and of going someplace far away was a little unnerving to him, but there was nothing quite like the feeling of being a part of Kei's family to make him feel a hundred times better.

* * *

During the night, Kei woke up, unable to sleep. She'd had a horrid dream that had seemed painfully real. She couldn't quite recall what it was, only that involved her back aching in pain and that she had been hot. Very hot. She woke up covered in sweat, her sheets wrapped around her body so tightly that she wasn't quite sure how to get out of them. Kei managed to unwrap herself and then changed into fresh pajamas, rubbing her sore back.

As she changed, she caught her reflection in the mirror, and stared at her back. In the middle of it there was a large discoloration. Kei's birthmark was on her ankle, and the doctors that saw her back when she was little thought that maybe it was a type of scar. The only thing was, she had been born with it. Rather ashamed of the unsightly mark, Kei always kept it covered up. However, it was too hot to wear something that covered up so much. She threw on a large tank top that had belonged to her father. It still did fit her father, so it looked quite silly on her, but it would have looked sillier on her father as he had accidentally put it in with his red shirt and died it pink.

She snuck downstairs to get a glass of water, and she froze when she heard Fuu move on the couch. She had forgotten that he was sleeping over. She debated going upstairs and changing, but the tank top was nice and cool. Besides, even if Fukou did happen to wake up and see her, it was too dark to see anything anyway.

Pouring herself a glass of cold water, she started back upstairs, pausing in the living room. She heard Fukou move again, and Kei wondered if he was really asleep. She placed the water down on the side table and made her way over to the couch, leaning over it.

His hair stuck out at every angle. His lips were parted slightly as he breathed steadily in and out, and his face looked relaxed. She leaned on the back of the couch, watching him for a moment. He looked so peaceful when he slept, so much like a little kid. He was always mature and distant when he was awake, but when he slept he looked so vulnerable….

Kei reached out a hand gently, brushing his bangs away from his eyes. They traveled down his cheek, and briefly touched his lips. He didn't move at all. She was surprised at how much she wanted to protect him, to slip under the covers and hold him tightly and closely for warmth. Blinking, she found that she felt like crying too, as if just watching him, just being close to him wasn't enough. Kei wanted more.

Leaning down slowly, her mouth brushed his. His lips, like Jou's were warm and soft, and yet there was something about the simple contact of his lips under hers that made her mind feel relax and made her want to die from sheer happiness. She lifted, watching his reaction. He licked his lips and made a soft sound of displeasure from having the contact broken, then he slowly rolled over, holding his pillow closer. Kei smiled down at him, kissing his forehead goodnight. "Goodnight, Fuu-sama," she whispered.

As she walked back upstairs with her glass of water, she missed hearing his sigh as he rubbed his cheek against the smooth fabric of the pillow, the scent of her shampoo and body wash still lingering on the air. Even he wasn't aware of it as he let out a wavering sigh.

"Kei…"

* * *

"Wait up!" Jou ran after Fukou as they walked out of the school. The red-headed boy had already undone several of the top buttons on his school uniform and had un-tucked his shirt, giving him a laid back appearance. Fukou's uniform looked the same, but somehow the taller, lankier boy could never quite make himself appear laidback. No matter how he dressed, he always looked more like a predator on the prowl. Jou smiled at Fuu. "How do you think you did?"

"I didn't do very well on math," he said with a shrug. "But I did a lot better than I would have done without Kei's help."

"She's a sweetheart, she is," Jou noted, swinging his bag over his shoulder as he walked. "I don't know many girls who would continue to be friends with her after learning exactly how low you think of their sex."

He felt suddenly very stiff and unhappy. "She doesn't know," he growled to him privately. Jou just gave a smile that said 'I knew it' and Fukou was contented by it. "Kei is different then all those other girls in the school, and if anybody _ever_ tries anything on her, I'm going to have their hands on a chopping block. Nobody touches my Kei. Not even you, Jou. I know that you've liked her for a long time."

The boy's cheeks turned as red as his hair. "Well," he said slowly, "how can I not love her, Fuu? She's the only girl I've ever gotten close to thanks to the way that you and Neji steal the attention of anyone of the female gender. She's also one of my oldest friends.

"Listen, Fuu-sama," he said, grabbing Fukou's arm and pulling him to a halt. The old rivalry flared up between them for a second, and it almost looked like Fukou was going to punch Jou. When he ripped his arm out of Jou's grasp, the younger boy didn't resist. "I know how you feel about girls, and I know why you think that they're stupid and manipulative, and I can understand it, I really can. But Kei…"

Jou didn't continue and Fuu stared at him, waiting. When it was perfectly clear that he wasn't taking a dramatic pause and knew no way to speak his mind, Fou glared at him, taking a small step closer to him. "What _about_ Kei?"

He sighed. "Never mind," Jou said, walking away. If Fukou was too stupid to see how much Kei cared for him, and too callous to realize that she was hurting every time she saw him playing with the heartstrings of another girl, then he deserved the pain he'd feel when things finally came crashing down on his head.

* * *

Fukou biked home. The house was empty when he got home, and he couldn't help but feel how odd it was. His mother had recently got a job working at a local store and normally worked during the day so that she would be home when he got home and putting supper on the table, the way his father liked it. He walked straight to the kitchen to search for a note. Maybe his mom had gone to the grocery store to get some fresh things for supper. There was no note, but there was a message on the answering machine. Fuu played it as he opened the fridge door to look for a snack.

Expecting his mother's voice, he was surprised when he heard a man's voice. "Hello Mr. Aisowotsukasu. This is Dr. Hojo, calling from Tokyo General Hospital. Please call me back at 555-5555, ext 1234 as soon as you get the message. It's regarding your parents."

He raised an eyebrow in surprise. Why would a hospital be phoning him? Maybe it wasn't even for him. Maybe they wanted his father and it was something about his grandparents or something. Holding the container of milk, he went to the phone and dialed the number.

Within four rings, it picked up, and a breathless man was on the other end, the same voice that Fukou had just heard over his answering machine. Now it sounded chipper, and Fukou found it really quite annoying. "Hello! Dr. Hojo speaking!"

"Um…" He suddenly felt very silly. What if it was for his father? What if it was for Aisowotsukasu the senior, and not the junior? He suddenly felt like hanging up. "This is Fuu Aisowotsukasu. There was a message on the machine from you, and…"

"Oh… _OH_." There was suddenly a very heavy, dead pause. It was followed by the sound of a squeaking chair, as if Hojo had just sad down. The serious tone from the answering machine was back in Hojo's voice. "Listen, kid, is there any way for you to come to hospital? Do you want me to send a car to come and pick you up? I don't really want to say something like this over the phone as opposed to in person. It would be better in person…."

He felt a chill sweep over his body. His fingers went numb. It didn't take a fool to figure out that something bad had happened. "You don't want to say what over the phone?" he inquired, his voice sounded flat and worried. He struggled to keep it covered up.

On the other side, Hojo sighed. "Mr. Aisowotsukasu, I'm afraid that there's been a bit of an accident. Yesterday afternoon, your father got into a car accident…"

After he heard that, everything was a blur for Fukou, and after that day he couldn't recall doing anything. It was a large gap in his memory, and painful for the rest of his life. What happened was that Hojo stopped talking as Fukou murmured 'What?' He dropped the container of milk. He said that he would be there as soon as possible. Hanging up the phone, ignoring the milk slowly pudding out of the milk container and soaking into the carpet. He dialed the Konseki's number and got Kei's mother.

"Would it be possible for you to come pick me up and take me to the hospital? I'd ride my bike, but that's a little far, and… and…" He choked, the feeling of his muscles clenching stopping his detached voice. He felt so removed from the rest of the world, as if part of him was more hypnotized by the way the milk moved inside the container, sloshing back and forth violently.

"Fuu… what's the matter?" she asked, sounding truly concerned for him.

"There was a car accident…"

She didn't need any more explanation. Her voice was forceful. "We'll be right there, Fuu!"

He hung up the phone, his eyes still focused on the bottle of milk. The puddle continued to expand. He blinked lazily. It felt like he hadn't blinked in ages. Looking down at himself, he touched his uniform gently. His uniform was stiff and uncomfortable and hospitals smelled funny. If he was going to go somewhere that was going to smell funny, he should be comfy. Walking upstairs, his feet stubbing themselves when he occasionally missed the steps, he made his way to the bedroom. He changed into a pair of jeans and threw on a clean shirt, buttoning it up as the doorbell rang.

After opening the door, he looked at Kei's parents standing there, their expressions worried. They talked animatedly, asking him if he had everything, and he wondered why they were talking so fast. Everyone always moved so fast. People needed to learn to be more laidback.

"I need a second," he said in that dazed voice. "I spilt some milk. I need to clean it up, otherwise it will soak into the carpet and the house will smell like sour milk. My parents wouldn't want that."

They exchanged looks with each other. "I'll take care of that, Fukou. You give me your house keys, and I'll make sure the house is spotless. You can stay at our house tonight, if needs be. Okay?"

"Yes. Thank you very much, Mrs. Konseki."

Mr. Konseki led him out to the car. He opened the front passenger door, but Fukou looked at the back seat, feeling very young again. The car seemed frightening, and huge. But it looked safe on the inside, where Kei sat, a worried expression on her face.

He blinked again. What was it? Was that his second blink since he had gotten that message? "Is that Kei?" he asked, some part of him hoping it was his imagination.

"She heard your mother tell me about the acci… incident and she refused to be left behind." He tried not to remember how forceful his daughter had been. She had stood in the doorway, not moving, and telling her parents that she _needed_ to come. No, not even 'needed'. She had used the word 'imperative'. It was that strange voice and expression she wore sometimes, that made her look as if she knew so much more than she ever could know at her age. "She said that you would need her, and she said it in such a way that it seemed as if she really did know what she was talking about."

"Kei always knows what she's talking about. She doesn't speak a lot, or for very long, so when she does, everyone needs to listen to her," he said. His blank expression softened a little as he continued to stare at her. His bottom lip started to shake and he bit it. He didn't want to be weak. He wouldn't start crying just because he felt worried. Crying was for the weak.

As he climbed into the back seat, Kei watched him, straining against her belt buckle to get a closer look at him. Had she ever seen him look so white? His movements were lacking in their usual grace. He moved stiffly, and when he turned to look at him, he looked so vulnerable and hurt that Kei couldn't even see the friend she knew and loved in his green eyes.

The car started with a rumble, and his lips parted slightly. He licked them nervously as the car started out of the driveway. Kei still hadn't taken her eyes off of him. As the car rolled into the street, she reached out and took his hand. His skin was icy to the touch. He looked at her a moment, and she reached out, taking off his glasses and putting then on her own head for safekeeping. His green eyes were filled with questions that had no answers as of now, and some which could never be answered. She saw that there were same for her, she saw his silent plea, and she nodded her head at his unspoken question.

Their hands still entwined, she allowed him to curl up on the back seat and rest his head in her lap, her arm wrapped reassuringly around his body. He stared straight ahead, still unable to think quite clearly. Kei brushed his dark hair for him, and his body relaxed a little at the familiar touch of her fingertips.

"You still have me, Fuu." She squeezed his hand. "You'll always have me."

* * *

The doctor was quite easy to find in the hospital. He took one look at the three of them, mainly at the tall sixteen year old boy and the girl that held his hand. Both of them looked pale and worried, and quite sour. But they looked perfect together, in some strange way that he didn't quite understand. He just felt like crap because he hadn't been told that there had been a daughter.

"I'll talk to you in my office," he said, indicating the room with the baby blue walls to his left. He looked at the large man that had brought them into the office. "Are you a member of the family?" Maybe he was an uncle…

"I'm just a friend of the family. My daughter and I will wait outside," he said, placing his hand on Kei's shoulder.

'Not a sister, then,' Hojo thought, letting out a captured breath. He nodded in understanding. "Mr. Aisowotsukasu, if you would…"

"No," he said quietly. His voice was dry and unused. How long had it been since he had spoken? Oh yes, when he had gotten into the car. He looked at Kei and was silent again, his green eyes looking straight into her grey ones and asking her again silent questions. She looked nervous under his gaze and then she nodded, her black ponytail falling around her shoulders in the act. He looked relieved.

She led him into the office, and Fuu's steps were rather uncertain. Hojo couldn't help but notice how tightly he was holding on to her and wondered about his shuffling steps until he noticed that there were glasses buried in the girl's dark hair. No doubt they were his. He briefly touched Fukou's shoulder as he entered the office. "Who is she?"

Fukou stared at the doctor, wondering what type of question that was to be asking. His face changed into one of defense, his voice changing into a low growl. "She's mine."

Apparently, that was enough for them, whatever that meant. Hojo took his seat, taking a deep breath and trying to figure out how to start. In the two chairs in front of him, Kei was struggling to remove the glasses from her hair where they had gotten caught, they were still tightly locked together, and Fuu was glaring at him.

It was kind of hard to say something while one was being glared at.

"You mentioned something about a car accident," he growled. He was still scared, though having Kei near him made him feel better. He couldn't see the doctor clearly. He was blurred. Because he felt scared, he was trying to be more aggressive, to keep anyone from noticing how vulnerable he was at that moment.

"Ah… ah, yes. Mr. Aisowotsukasu, I have some very bad news. Yesterday, your father got into a car accident. It seems that he sped up to go through a red light, and was T-boned in the intersection." Kei let out the smallest sound of surprise, but Fuu just kept staring ahead. "The other car struck from the driver's side. He is in critical condition, and luckily was the only other passenger in the car. Your mother suffered head and neck injuries, as well as a broken arm. She woke up this morning, and should be ready to be released within forty-eight hours of now, providing that there are no further signs of effect from striking her head. Your father, however, was kill… killed upon impact."

He expected Fukou to hold the girl's hand tighter, but instead Fou looked suddenly very empty. His body relaxed, his hand falling out of hers. His green eyes were visibly larger than normal. "My… my father is dead…?"

"I'm afraid so."

There was an uncomfortable silence. Soon, Fukou swallowed and he once again squeezed Kei's hand. "When can I see my mother?"

"I'll have a nurse take you to her," Hojo said. He stood up, patting Fukou's shoulder as he walked by. "I'm very sorry for your loss."

The doctor left, leaving the two of them in his office. The door was slowly closing behind him. Kei finally managed to free his glasses from her fine hair and held them out to him. He didn't take them, not at first. Her voice was soft. "Fuu-sama? Are you okay?"

He didn't turn to look at her, he just kept staring where Hojo had been sitting a moment before. "My father is dead. I'm… I'm never going to see him again." Her fingertips touched his cheeks gently, drawing his face around to look at him. He looked lost. "I hate him," he said slowly. There was a loud click as the door finally shut. "I hated him so much. At least… at least every other day I looked at him and wished for him to die. So… so… _so why do I miss him_?"

He suddenly broke into sobs, nearly collapsing on himself. Kei flung herself out of his chair and fell to her knees in front of him, telling him not cry. He slipped out of his chair and landed beside her, throwing his arms around her and drawing her close, burying his face into her shoulder and sobbing loudly. Kei held him, rocking him back and forth, feeling tears sting her eyes as she wished that there was something she could say or do that would make him feel better.

* * *

Kei watched, quiet, as Fukou finished putting the cross into the ground in his back yard. He stepped away to look at his work, and he wished he could have done better. He walked back the rest of the way, his arm falling around Kei's shoulder and she cuddled next to him. She patted his arm. "I think it looks wonderful," she said proudly, looking at the cross that bore Wolfbane's name.

"I can't believe how much things have changed lately, and yet nothing at all. Wolfsbane and dad are both gone… we know that, but we both keep expecting her to hear her bark or to hear him yell at us for having done something wrong. He made our life crap. He was… no, he became a horrible person, when he had me, when he was forced to marry Mom because she was pregnant. He never got over the idea that we ruined his life and he held it against us for the rest of his life."

"And yet you feel bad because you'll never get the chance to make amends, prove to him that you're an amazing person," she said understandingly. He nodded, and she sighed. "Well, there are still people who love you that are here, so you can always prove to them how amazing you are, but that's kind of pointless." She turned to look at him and she smiled. "We already know how amazing you really are."

His arm tightened and he kissed her forehead, making her turn a dark shade of pink. He didn't really notice. After looking at the empty grave once more, he turned away, bringing Kei with him. "Come on, Konseki-san. The grades should be posted by now. Let's bike to the school and see how we did. I want to see if I managed to kick your ass in math or not." The walked for a moment in silence, and then Kei heard him mumble under his breath: 'I'm going to have dozens of kids when I grow up, and I'll be a better father. I'll be the best father in the world.'

She didn't doubt it one little bit, but wondering where he was going to get a wife who would bear him so many kids put a smile on her face.

Boys were so silly.

* * *

To be Continued...


	12. Wherever You Will Go

AN: I am tired of studying. Arg. Oh well. Only a couple dozen more pages to do and then I'm done my history notes. Who knew that reading notes and making notes on the notes and then notes on the notes could be so taxing? Well, I am proud of this chapter.

This is by far one of my favorites, because we get to see a side of Kei which we don't normally get to see as she starts becoming aware of her own sexuality. She is, after all, sixteen, and I don't particularly like portraying Sango/Kei as a being completely against relationships or men. From my own perspective on Kei, I'd say that she's a hopeless romantic who looks at guys, but does nothing else because she's too interested in school and getting ahead. She figures they'll be time for men later in her life, but that won't stop her from looking now and then.

Also, we get to see her theories on demons from all the way in chapters one and two returning with Inuyasha. Why Inuyasha? Well, it's my opinion that they are secretly a lot closer in the series than people tend to think. Inuyasha's always the one telling her that if she does stupid things, he'll hit her or hate her or something. When she first enters the series, they understand each other and fight together. In the very beginning, I think, that those two were really the comrade in arms, in the sense that they could trust each other to take care of themselves in a fight and take care of other people. It isn't until the series progresses that Sango is able to relax and quit feeling guilty for trying to kill Inuyasha that she's able to become friends with Kagome, and eventually Miroku. But it was Inuyasha whom she first became attached to. So that's why…

And that's just my own theory. On to responses…

Ninaless-chan: As always, I look forward to your reviews. The things you say make sense, and even come out sounding poetic. You make me understand my own characters by pointing out their thoughts and beliefs, and I am able to then correct mistakes I may have made by making them accidentally OOC, or by deciding that I have left out something vital to their characters. I am glad to say that I had this chapter planned and written before I had gotten your review… I think I am starting to anticipate you. (_smiles_)

Onyx Rose: I have the whole story written already, but answering that would ruin the surprise, now wouldn't it?

Karnation: It was a very beautiful song, but I have tried to find it and listen to it and I can't find it on my search engine. Do you happen to know who the singer is? Perhaps I would have better luck that way.

Chadrific: As this story progresses, I don't know if he knows she likes him or not. Because, as you will see in this chapter, we get into Kei's thoughts and we see that she doesn't—or at least is trying very hard not to—see him romantically. My personal theory about Fuu at this stage in his life is that he's scared of getting the crap kicked out of him if he tries to put any moves on her. And don't worry. This chapter has some kissing, some fluff, and a very small bit of humor.

Hoshiko: That's a very good question, and I suppose that there are two different answers. On one hand, I am not upset skipping over things like the funeral, mainly for my own inhibitions (like being nervous to tackle something so serious or about my own personal beliefs towards death playing too much of a part). In regards to characters or relationships, yes, I am sad that I skip over things in their life, because I mainly write character-centered stories. My stories have little plot because everything is about character development and I regret not being able to cover everything, but I realize I can't. It's a simply time constraint. As it is, the story is long, but if I was supposed to cover everything… it would be ridiculous.

Fireblade: Actually, that happened because a) people die and b) I really hated his dad and c) to copy the past a little bit more. Fukou has some father issues, and I think that now he might begin to be able to recover from some of them. And as I said before, things that affected them deeply have left scars… like… Kohaku, for instance?

Okay… that's all the reviews I can find scattered in my inbox. I really need to clean it up. If I missed you, I apologize. I hope everyone enjoys this chapter! (I maintain I was on some form of LSD when I wrote it or something...)

_Enjoy!_

If a great wave should fall  
It would fall upon us all  
And between the sand and stone  
Could you make it on your own  
If I could,

Then I would  
I'll go wherever you will go

-Wherever You Will Go, the Calling

* * *

Chapter Twelve: Wherever You Will Go

Given the recent developments in Fukou's life, he passed up the opportunity to go to Greece. Instead, he had had decided to stay at home in Japan and work during the summer vacation. He was sixteen, old enough to know that money would be tight. He and his Mom could go and enjoy a free vacation, but that would mean they wouldn't have earned anything all summer. They didn't have enough money saved away to pay for the funeral, medical care for his mother, and for the house.

The opportunity instead passed to Kei. She had come in fifth over all, but the fourth-runner up had fallen ill. Plans were quickly made for Kei and her mother to travel to Greece to take place in the competition. When Kei received the gi she was supposed to wear for the competition, she tried it on with trembling fingers. Looking at herself in the mirror, Kei suddenly had the desire to show Yasha-sempai. She wanted to show Fukou as well, but that would feel too much like flaunting the fact that she was going to get to travel a third of the way around the world and he wasn't.

* * *

At the shrine, Fukou was busy sweeping the front steps when he heard the pitter-patter of tiny feet. He turned to see a young teenager running towards him. He leaned against the broom cautiously, smiling at the girl. Kagome's daughter, Kaede, stared up at him with her wide blue eyes, looking very serious, just like Yasha-sempai did.

"You _did_ promise to take good care of Barton! Make sure you take good care of Barton!" Fukou smiled at her, and the little face she made when she tried to look fierce and scare him into taking batter care of her pet fish.

"Barton will be as happy as he can be, I promise." His smile grew into the charming one he wore when he was trying to persuade somebody, and Kaede looked at him suspiciously. He repeated it again, feeling a little dirty for suddenly smiling at Kaede like that.

Kaede was the only other girl Fukou liked, and like Kei, she too was out of grounds for his mind-games with the opposite sex. Kaede was, for one, still in middle school, and though only a few years apart, it sounded wrong to be courting someone in middle school. Secondly, she was like a cousin to him. Third, Inuyasha would _kill_ him.

"I promise, Kaede-chan."

The family was going away. They said that they were going to go and visit some of their friends and family. Though Fuu hadn't been able to weasel out an address or a city from them, they guaranteed that they wouldn't be very far away, but far enough away that they wouldn't be able to communicate or take care of the shrine.

He continued to sweep the shrine, the robes that Kagome had given him feeling oddly comforting. It felt familiar, sweeping the old shrine and wearing the dark robes she had given him. He paused to wipe some sweat from his forehead. He didn't really know why he enjoyed this so much. It was _work_, after all, but he knew that when he was done…

_I get to go home, and I get to see Sango. Ah, Sango…_

Fukou shook his head. Where had that thought come from. Sango? Who was Sango? 'I probably need some water,' he thought, pausing in his cleaning and looking at the house.

He heard feet again approaching him. He turned to greet them to the shrine, managing to get to the first syllable out before he stopped. Kei stood in front of him, and she looked shocked.

"No wonder you didn't tell me where you got a summer job," she said, trying to sound happy even though she couldn't cover up the fact that she was hurt. Her nose scrunched up in the way it always did when she was confused or trying very hard to hide her emotions. She held her chin high. "You knew I would be jealous."

"Well, someone had to watch the shrine while Yasha-sempai and Kagome-sama go on vacation. They know that I need the money, and I live nearby anyway, so I got that responsibility." He held his chin just as high. "Besides, I am older. And you get to go traveling, so this way it's fair. After all, I'm jealous that you're taking the trip I could have had."

"I asked you if you would be okay if I accepted it and you said yes!" Kei pointed out.

Fukou sidestepped the on coming fight by gesturing to her clothes. "Is that the gi you'll be wearing?" he asked. He smiled at her fondly. "It looks very good."

"Your outfit looks good too." Kei looked at the black pants he was wearing and the black shirt. It really did look god. She tilted her head as she stared at him. "You know, with your outfit and everything, and your dark hair… you look like someone from my dreams. It's weird. I've always had this dream from as long as I can remember about a man that wore dark robes like that and dark hair and these very gentle eyes. And…" She looked down at her right hand and slowly closed it, trying to forget how whenever she looked at the man in her dreams, there always seemed to be something sad about him, and that somehow, it had involved the man's right hand…

"Has Yasha-sempai already left?" she inquired, looking around the shrine. Fukou nodded and she looked crestfallen. "Oh," she said. "I was hoping to show him too. Well… I don't want to interfere with your work or anything. I should probably be getting home."

They stared at each other a moment. They hated it when they had awkward moments. Neither of them were really quite sure what caused the awkward moments, only that there seemed to be something just out of sight, just of mind, just… just around the corner from their minds and voices and if they could somehow give weight, a texture, or a name to that ethereal thing that lurked just out of reach, so much more would make sense in their lives.

"I leave tomorrow morning, so I guess that this will be the last time I see you until school starts next semester. I hope you enjoy your summer. I'll see you as soon as I get back, and I'll write a lot." She tried to smile weakly, and there was a fraction of awkwardness in the silence of her smile. "Goodbye, Fuu-sama."

He watched her walk away, and he wished he could have gone with her. Kei's mother could look after her well enough, but it wasn't the same as having_ him_ there to watch her back for her. He dropped his broom and hurried up to catch her, grabbed her arm. He leaned down, as if he meant to kiss her on the mouth, but instead his lips landed on her cheek and lingered there a moment. He blushed as he let her go. "Good luck, Kei," he said uncomfortably. "I hope that you kick some ass for me."

She smiled at him sweetly, feeling her face burn. "Konseki-san."

But this time she didn't hit him.

* * *

Watching the people at the party dance and flirt together, Kei began to feel very uncomfortable. It was her last night in Greece. She was beginning to feel very homesick. Or, rather, she was beginning to feel very _friend_ sick. Kei was too shy to speak to these people, and most of them spoke different languages. Her English wasn't even very good. Fuu was the one who was good at words.

'I wish people spoke in binary code,' she wished for what had to have been the hundredth time.

Everything in the room of the hotel was pretty, to the paintings on the fresco walls, to the plants, to the tiny lights along the ceiling. They were playing a song that Kei didn't recognize. She hadn't recognized any of the songs that had been played. She wished that her friends were with her.

If Neji was there, she'd have to baby sit him because he'd be busy trying to cop a feel with the girls there (of which there were few) and they would have kicked his ass.

If Shin was here she'd have someone to talk to, and she would be able to go and look at art and not feel silly when she nearly cried seeing the remains of the Parthenon, because she knew that Shin would have been crying too. He knew how small and insignificant he was, and so when he found something as majestic as the Parthenon, he always felt a little moved. That was why he loved art and architecture. He wanted to be remembered.

If Jou was there she'd have someone to joke around with. Her Kitsune. They'd have snuck into the guy's locker room and stolen all their boxers and briefs and thrown them into the freezer of the hotel. They'd have jumped on elevators and pressed all the buttons. They would have called room service and gotten cheesecake at three am and watched movies on the tv. They would have played hide and go seek in the marketplaces and just acted like _kids_ through the whole trip. There was only one other person who made Kei feel like she was being a real _kid_, to let her experience joy and break loose the way children do… there was only one other person who could make the most mundane tasks seem entertaining, or chocolate seem wonderful, or school seem interesting…

'I don't want to think about him,' she thought, trying to focus on the music. The thought, however, was already there.

If Fuu was there…

'I'm going out for some fresh air.' She hurried from the room. No one even noticed when she went outside. She hurried to the railing which lined the cliff their hotel sat upon. Kei hugged her jacket closer to her, though the night was muggy and warm. It was an inner cold that she felt… sadness.

From the railing she could see the tops of the houses at the base off the cliff, and the sea beyond that. The night sky made it look black, but the boats that were on the Mediterranean made shimmering dots of silver, red, or green. The moon was a crescent in the sky. In the hotel behind her, the music was so loud she could still hear it. A slow song came on, making her happy that she had gotten out of there so fast. This was a night for romance: Greece, the sky, the backdrop, the glittering lights of the dance… Kei didn't want to be reminded of it any more than she had to be.

Nor did she want a girl to come up and ask her to dance, thinking she was a boy. With her hair up in a bun, it looked short, and they couldn't really see the fact that she did have a soft female form, thanks to her clothes, the dim lights, and the fact that she was more obviously muscular rather than vivacious. Nor did it help that she hadn't realized how dressy this dance was going to be, and she had selected a grey shirt, a black French-cut blazer and black dress pants to wear to it.

And then she had seen the girls, wearing skirts to show off their legs and shimmering tops that showed off how endowed they were despite the fact that they were martial artists, and she had felt suddenly…

Misplaced.

'If Fuu-sama were here…' Kei shook the thought away. She didn't want to think about him being here… she didn't want to think about him at all… about the melodic sounds of his voice… about the strong way he held himself… about how his eyes seemed to glow when he was in a good mood… about how he really had looked wonderful in those clothes… about how he had kissed her goodbye and good luck and how much she wished it hadn't been her cheek…

'Stupid romance,' she grumbled, feeling her eyes start to water. She concentrated on the ships in the harbor, watching them slowly move. 'Romance is supposed to make you feel happy… so why is it making me feel so sad?' She shivered, pulling her jacket a little closer. Kei always got cold when she felt like crying…

_"Cold?"__ Fuu asked. He held out his own jacket for her, smiling at her thoughtfully._

_Kei shook her head. "I'm good, thank you, Fuu-sama. If I wore that too, I'd surely be overheated." He shrugged and tossed the jacket over his shoulder, standing next to her and leaning on the railing as she was. She looked at him from the corner of her eye. "The sea certainly is pretty. It makes me feel like I'm standing next to the ocean."_

_"I've seen things that are prettier," he said in his richly deep voice, turning slightly to look at her. He didn't realize she was looking at him and he was caught as he tried to sneak a peek at her face. The color rose to their cheeks and they both quickly looked away._

_Her heart was beating incredibly fast. It was so loud she couldn't hear the music in the hotel anymore. But Fukou was closer than the hotel. She could still hear him breathing… he was so close she could actually feel his breath on her exposed neck. She shivered in delight. Her neck was sensitive and she delighted in the way the gentleness of the warm air made her feel both burning and freezing at the same time. She shut her eyes, letting her skin feel more…_

_"Kei…" His voice sounded strained, as if he were trying to say something and yet couldn't. He let out his breath, and again there was the burning, icy pleasure in her body. "Why do we have to be like this? Why can't we just admit our feelings for each other and have it over with? I… I was made for you… you know that's true!"_

_He reached out gripped her muscular arm. She didn't resist it when he pulled her around to look at him. His glasses had slipped down, his green eyes visible over the frames. His eyes were framed by such dark lashes… Fuu was oddly beautiful, in a masculine way. He was… he was…_

_'Perfect,' she mentally sighed. She tried to look away from him, but she couldn't. She tried to pretend that he wasn't speaking the truth, but he was… they belonged together. Language and mathematics. Science and religion. Male and Female. Fighter and lover. Realist and dreamer. _

_They were such opposites… binary opposites… and yet sometimes, it was hard to tell where one ended and the other began. Kei, who was such a tomboy. Fukou, who was so interested in his looks and making himself appear perfectly dressed, if somber. Kei, who loved to dream and yet who accepted deep down that things she dreamed of were impossible. Fuu who saw everything crystal clear and yet imagined a perfect life for himself. Kei, who felt more spiritual than Fuu, who was now working on a shrine, and yet both of them had the logic to work with science and love it. Fuu, who could so easily pick up language, and yet it was Kei who got him out of trouble in fights using words. Kei, who was so good at math and yet it was Fukou who had picked up chemistry the fastest. It was Kei who acted like the loving sister to everyone, yet it Fuu who was interested in the opposite sex, and both of them were fighters…_

_"Fuu-sama…"_

_"Don't resist it, Kei! You know that it's true!"_

_She smiled up at him warmly. The ethereal thing, the thing that they were supposed to know, that they were supposed to _understand_ was right over head. It was almost within reach of being touched if they were just a little closer. "I wasn't going to."_

_"Kei…" He suddenly pulled her closer and kissed her. He kissed her the way she had seen him kiss all those other girls, and ignite feelings in her of which she hadn't known. Her skin felt numb at his touch. She sighed contentedly and leaned into him tilting her face up to meet his. She loved the feeling of his body pressed against hers._

_His lips were gentle as they kissed her, so soft and delicate that she opened her mouth, sighing with pleasure. When had she ever been treated like spun glass by a boy? When had she ever been handled as if she was the most precious thing in existence? Never… She kissed him back just as sweetly, trying to tell him how much she loved him, that she would never hurt him…_

_His warm tongue gently ran along her bottom lip and her body shook with excitement. Her hands gripped at him, pulling him closer as he begged for entrance. She tentatively parted her lips as she kissed him, feeling his warm tongue enter…_

Her eyes suddenly snapped open. She had frightened herself out of her reverie. Kei was breathing heavily. She felt flushed and her heart rate was erratic. She gulped down the warm air, which felt cold as it touched her throat. 'What was that?' Kei wondered, pressing a hand to her forehead.

Of course, she knew what it was. She knew that she's just had a fantasy about a boy… her first _real_ fantasy, anyway. She had, of course, dreamed about meeting one or two movie stars on occasion—not that she'd tell anyone—but this had been different… even _after_ it was over, she was still feeling effects, still feeling his warmth pouring into her body.

And it had been about Fukou…

She growled in the night, her hands tightening around the railing. 'Stupid romantic atmosphere,' she thought to herself, staring so hard at the ships on the water that her eyes began to hurt. 'Why did I even think about Fuu-sama? Besides the fact that I have no interest in him whatsoever because he's my best friend… I have _no_ interest in him _at all_.'

She paused, thinking about that, feeling her anger slide away. How many pretty girls had she seen Fukou flirt with in the past year? She'd lost count. Had yet he never did or tried anything with her. Not even a 'you look nice today, Kei'. No, the closest she had gotten to a compliment from him was 'you grew breasts' in an astounded voice, as if he had thought that maybe he had been mistaken and she really was a boy. Even when her friends went out of their way to plan time together for Fuu and Kei, he never tried anything with her… but maybe the example at Jou's party wasn't the best. She had been crying, after all. After thinking a moment longer, she wondered if maybe he didn't try anything because he was worried about getting his ass kicked.

'That's silly,' she chided herself. 'In all the time I've known him, I've never really hurt him. And he could block me anyway, but he doesn't. He does something to piss me off, and he accepts his punishment. By now… it's our shtick. He shouldn't be worried about me actually hurting him. It's stupid. And Fuu-sama isn't stupid. He just… has never tried anything nor _will_ he try anything because I'm not his type. He likes girls that are stupid and very feminine and curvy and… not me.'

She slunk down lower on the railing, her chin now in her hand. "Fuu will never like me," she mumbled grumpily. "Stupid romance…"

* * *

When she got back, the first person she went to see was, of course Fuu. She felt rather silly walking up to the shrine to find him, because the dream had only happened the night before. It was still very much fresh in her mind, and even just thinking of Fukou brought back the memories of his hands on her back, his breath on her skin…

The wind pulled at her, and she shivered a little. Ever since Fukou had admitted that the wind bothered him, she had been paying more attention to it. She had to admit, the wind was very creepy. It sounded a little bit like a scream at times, the way it whipped around the corners of buildings. It always rather sounded like a moan or a whine. The wind sounded very much alive… and in pain.

The shrine was empty, save for Yasha-sensei. Kei ran up to him, smiling, bowing politely before him. "Yasha-sensei! You've returned! How was your vacation?"

"It was good, Kei. How was your trip?"

She looked a little crestfallen at the question, and she pulled out the ribbon from her pocket. It was white, with gold writing and it said 'honorable mention'. She handed it to him, her voice softer. Her teacher had to hold it tightly so that it didn't fly away from him. She shivered a little when his long nails accidentally scraped her skin.

For years Kei had been over the crush she had had on her teacher. The memories that had seemed so close when she had been little had been long since dimmed by time. She could no longer remember the promises made to her, or the voice, only the eyes of the man that was speaking. They looked so sad and happy at the same time. How was it even possible to look that way?

Her teacher didn't have eyes like that. Kei dreamed of one day finding the person she felt she needed to find… but it wasn't Yasha and she had willingly accepted it after she had seen how happy he was with his family. Yet there was a connection between them which she couldn't deny. Yasha-sensei understood her, and the way that Kagome-sama was always there to greet her with such undeniable warmth and friendliness… there some connection to both of them….

"Honorable mention, Kei?"

She blushed and nodded. The wind blew his braid behind him, catching the edges of the bandanna he always wore and ruffling them. Kei had to project her voice just to be heard. "I did my best, Sensei. I did as best as I could, but all I got was an honorable mention. So I'm going to train harder this year… next year I want to go back and do better. I want to get at the very least fourth place next year. And then I'll go back again, and in my final year, I'll win the gold metal. That's what I want."

"Kei," he asked, as quietly as he could given the weather. He bent down on one knee, holding the ribbon back to her. He raised an eyebrow, and again she had to wonder about his eyes. They were liquid gold… so wonderful and expressive, and so very beautiful. They were the eyes of a predator… Something began to click in the back of her mind as the sky darkened. "Are you ashamed of the fact that you got an honorable mention, Kei-chan?"

"Y… yes, sensei."

"Why?"

She looked up at him, her grey eyes as fierce as the thunderheads that had enclosed Tokyo. Thunder rumbled. "Because I could have done better! I could have done much better! I _should_ have done better! I lost because of stupid mistakes that might have killed me in a real fight. I was dishonorable to myself because I was holding back from everything I know that I shouldn't know… thinking that if someone saw me use those moves, they might think that you had been breaking the rules by teaching me stuff that I shouldn't know at my level! But you didn't teach me them. I've known since I was little, so I should have used them. I shouldn't have held back! I…"

His clawed hand brushed her cheek, startling her. She wondered why he didn't take better care of his nails. "Kei, you did the best you could. How many other kids were at that meet?"

"A… a lot."

"Then don't think of what you had left to do. Look back at how far you've come. Everybody falls eventually. It's not the trials we haven't overcome that tell people what kind of person we are or how good of a life we've led… it was the trials you've overcome that reflects the life you led."

It was always odd hearing him say something like that. It didn't sound right coming from him. It sounded more like Kagome-sama speaking through her teacher. For what was not the first time in her life, she wondered how Kagome and Yasha met, about what they had been through to make Kagome become more ferocious around her husband—yelling at him or throwing things at him when he was being insensitive, much to the amusement of his pupils—and make her teacher sound wiser.

The thunder rumbled again, coming closer. The rain began to come down in lazy, fat drops. They felt like large bugs landing on her skin. Kei tucked the ribbon back into her back pocket. She didn't want anything to happen to it. She tried smiling at her teacher, and asked where Fuu was.

The words were ripped right from her mouth as a great gust of wind picked up, and Yasha's head band was lifted up. Kei's hair nearly blinded her for a second, but not long enough. She had still seen it. Yasha had no ears. It was ridiculous. It was physically impossible, wasn't it? How did he hear if he didn't have any ears? Kei had to be mistaken… but she had to double check now. She would rip off his headband, and she'd see that he did have human ears exactly where human ears should be… and she would feel ridiculous.

"I'm sorry, Kei. What did you…"

She reached out grabbed the bandanna, ripping it off before he could react. She stared at him. He didn't have human ears at all.

He had puppy ears.

She dropped the bandanna. Suddenly it all made sense: the glowing eyes, why he had silver hair at such a young age, how his teeth were sharp, he had claws, and his name. Demon. Demon teacher… that's what she had been calling him… 'I was right,' she though quickly, starting to back up as he reached out to grab her arm. She was vaguely aware that he was saying her name, but she was too scared to really react. Her mind was still crystal clear, her body was still reacting… and yet the two things weren't related at all.

'I was right… back when I was a little girl, all those years ago… I was right… he _is_ a demon!'

It was a simple choice for her body to choose between fight and flight. The rain made everything slick, and her hair clung to her face. She stepped away again as the lightning flashes, illuminating his pale bangs and his glowing eyes… She was scared, and she wanted to fight. She felt an irrational need to fight and kill in defense… And her mind snapped back to her body. It seized control of her fists and feet before she could attack him. He might be frightening, but he was _still_ her teacher, still a father and a husband, and she couldn't attack him.

So she fled. She just hadn't expected him to follow her. When she glanced behind her and saw he was following her, she began to run quicker, heading for the first thing she saw. The well-house. The well-house was dark. Surely there could be somewhere in the well house where she could hide!

* * *

Fukou saw Kei running as he stepped outside. He wondered where she was going, calling after her as he ran in her footsteps. He shuddered at the wind, but went on anyway, the rain beating against his face. Fuu didn't want to be out in weather like this. The rain made him feel depressed, and he was worried about his body and how it would react to weather like this.

* * *

She ran to the well-house and something grabbed her wrist. She screamed loudly. Screw running away! She made a fist and she drew back her arm to punch. And it dropped as soon as she spun around to see that it was Fuu who had grabbed her. He was soaking wet, just like she was, but at least he didn't all of a sudden turn pink when he looked at her face. His hand made her wrist feel like little tendrils of electricity were flowing between them.

"Fuu!"

It was one of those rare times when she said his name. He loved it when she said his name. Why did she always have to be so formal with him? He stared at her, at the tears that blended with the rain drops on her cheeks, and he barely had time to really see her before she suddenly grabbed him, burying her face into the front of the robes he was wearing. Instinctually, he wrapped his arms around her and made soothing noises, his visage softening as it did whenever they were alone. "Kei… what's wrong?"

"…Yasha…"

"Kei," he suddenly heard his teacher growl from the doorway to the well-house. "Give me back my bandanna."

Fuu glanced down to see that she held his red bandanna in her hand. Her knuckles were white from holding it. She looked up, startled at the sound of his voice, and she was looking around his shoulder. Fuu untangled the bandanna from her hand, but her face scared him. No longer was it her knuckles which were pale… all of her was pale, making the blush on her cheeks stand out vibrantly. Her grey eyes almost began to look blue again.

He looked over his shoulder to see what had startled her. A monster stood in the doorway. He could make out the pale braided hair, which made him think it was their teacher, but the eyes… they were like those of a wild animal, flickering in the night, gold one minute and bright green the next, like the eyes of a cat. And he had ears. Lightning flashed and lit up the room for a second… the monster was still in shadows, but it had been enough. The hair, the eyes, the red clothes, the old sword at his side… It was his teacher.

"Holy _shit_!" Fuu cried as he spun around, holding out his arm to protect Kei. The little girl clung to the back of his robe, trying to peer around him as much as she was trying to hide her fears in the comforting smell of his clothes. Fuu stared at his teacher, suddenly very quiet. "…what the _fuck_?"

"Will you stop swearing!" the older male barked. His gold eyes narrowed a little and he sat down cross legged, shifting his sword so that it lay across his lap. He calmly began to unbraid his hair, ringing it out. "Damn it, Fuu, do you want my daughter to hear language like that?"

"You're… you're a demon!"

He stopped wringing out his hair, looking pointedly at his two favorite students, the reincarnated souls of his friends. Somehow, he had always hoped that if they ever found out about his "secret", their memories would stir a little and they wouldn't react with fear. He was relieved—and a little frightened—when Kei hadn't reacted with fear. In fact, Kei had briefly looked like Sango had looked all those years ago, when she was about to clobber him for thinking that he had destroyed her village. And then she had run. And Fuu was making a stand, trying to protect Kei… but he _was_ scared.

"Yes," he said calmly. "I'm a demon. I'm a…"

"You're a dog demon," Kei spoke up quietly, from behind Fuu. Her grey eyes were cloudy as she looked at him. "But you aren't a whole demon, are you? You're only half demon. You're a _hanyou_. You have the senses of a demon, and their ability to heal, and their speed… but by comparison to them all those things are weak, aren't they…"

He looked at her, still calm, despite the inner turmoil. It had been years since he had heard anybody call him a half-breed. He had forgotten how much it had stung. "Yes. I'm only half demon."

She suddenly smiled triumphantly. "Yes! I knew it! I knew it! I knew that you were a demon!" Her hands tightened around Fukou and she stood next to him, holding her head high. "I was right, Fuu-sama! You used to laugh at Jou-kun and I for thinking that demons and spirits and stuff were real, but we were right all along!"

Fuu growled and pushed her back a little more, jutting her gently in her ribs to keep her silent. He looked back at his teacher, raising an eyebrow suspiciously. Maybe his teacher was crazy. Maybe that was why he always carried a sword. Maybe… "Demons aren't real," he said curtly.

"Yes, they are," the older male corrected.

"They are real, Fuu! They are!" She gripped his arm, directing his attention down to her. She looked up at him, her grey eyes wide, and yet so clear that he found himself falling into them. The ground beneath him felt unstable. Her voice was so full of conviction.

"They are, Fuu-sama," she said again, softening her voice slightly. "Trust me, they are real. They are very real. I knew. I've always known, but people always told me I was wrong and I started to believe them… but they are real. They are very real, Fuu-sama. Trust me, please! I can't explain how I know, but I can feel the truth all the way down to my bones. They are real, and some of them can be good, like Yasha-sensei! Please, Fuu-sama, you _have _to believe me!"

He dropped the arm that had been holding her back, and he smiled at her. Kei felt her heart skip a beat. What girl couldn't resist that smile? He stroked her wet cheek, blinking. "I believe you, Kei-chan." Her heart skipped another beat. "I can't explain how, but I feel the same thing that you do."

Inuyasha felt a little disgusted watching them. They were the same no matter what, it seemed, at least when they were acting like it was just the two of them. He rolled his eyes, and when their moment had passed, he began to explain everything—or almost everything—about them. He talked about his family, about Tetsusaiga… and they answered some of his sentences.

They hadn't reacted quite the way he had hoped they would… but at least they had seen to begun to remember a little bit more of their past lives. When it came to demons, fighting them, killing them, eating habits, and things like that.

Frankly, Inuyasha was getting impatient. He wanted his friends back.

* * *

-to be continued... with Fuu and Kei going back for their second year. 


	13. What Would Happen

AN: I am glad that so many people agree with me! Whee! I thought I was the only one! I've just seen way to many fan fics where people seem to think that Sango and Inuyasha hate each other, and the animosity always seemed unwarranted to me.

Starzki: I did try to make it tame. (_sweatdrops_) I guess I just wanted it to be mostly cute, with a hint (maybe a blatant one) that she is also starting to think about physical relationships. I didn't want her to start seeming cold in romantic relationships… which she can be… to everyone else but Fukou.

Serena: I won't like. It was a tad slow. But it was very cute. Besides, I can be slower than that sometimes… so don't worry. I won't say anything. And I didn't put Kaede in because she has her own story. I wanted this one to be focused on Kei and Fuu. If you notice, not even Jou, the best friend to both Fuu and Kei, get a lot of screen time.

Bonzo: Have you ever had one those crushes where you think about them romantically, and then deny everything because it's too… weird, or awkward, and mostly because you are scared of rejection? That is what Kei is scared of. So nothing will happen for their feelings for a little bit… though they do, thank god, finally start getting closer! (_cheers_) And they don't necessarily know about the Sengoku Jidai yet, but they are... well, you should be able to figure it out when you see Fuu in history class.

Fireblade: That is actually pretty darn creative, but it makes me a little sad. Class systems like that don't allow people to do the best they can simply because of into which family you were born. It doesn't seem right.

Bright Star: Yeah, he can, and the comment was really put in their to show Inuyasha's character. Because of working and because he has a family, he only goes to the Sengoku Jidai once a month. The rest of the time he's stuck at the shrine and only rarely goes out because he can't hide the fact that he's a half-demon very well (as the bandanna incident suggests). The only human interaction he gets in that time is his family and his students, two of which happen to be his best friends who don't remember him at all. He's lonely.

Destiny: If not in Greece, than wait. (_pokes_)

Nikki: I would certainly like more information.

Chadirific: I have forgotten what she looks like too. But don't worry. Even if she does look more like Kagome (because she is only a quarter demon) she will have Inuyasha's personality. She is, as people will say, he father's daughter. And I hate thieves too.

Karnation: Don't worry. I like music in other languages. I listen to music in Spanish, English, and Japanese (though I can only understand that English and certain lines I have memorized in the other two). I have a tendency to like English music for lyrics, but music from other cultures for the actual written music. (Which is funny given the fact that I couldn't read music if my life depended on it!)

And as that is all the reviews I can find in my inbox, I guess it's time to edit!

"What would happen if we kissed  
Would your tongue slip past my lips  
Would you run away, would you stay  
Or would I melt into you  
Mouth to mouth, lust to lust  
Spontaneously combust"

What Would Happen, by Meredith Brooks

Enjoy! (_evil__ laughter_)

* * *

Chapter Thirteen: 

What Would Happen

"Oh no," the science teacher said, turning around and seeing a familiar head of tousled black hair and a ponytail sitting in the first row of the seats in her class. The science teacher held her forehead, feeling a headache already starting to develop. "You two are taking science again? Do you two know how many things you two set on fire last year? How many beakers you broke? By the time you two graduate, you're not going to leave behind a science department!"

"Well," Fukou said, smiling at his teacher, "it's a risk we're going to take. After all, I want to be a doctor, and she wants to be a kinesiologist. We have to take science for that."

The teacher looked at him like he was insane. "I can understand Kei, but why in the world would you want to be a doctor? Wouldn't you prefer something where lives aren't going to be dependent on you? No offense, Fuu, but I've seen the frogs you dissected last year and frankly, they looked like a butcher got to them."

His smile grew, and had Kei not been flipping through the syllabus for the course, she would have seen it and smacked it away before he could say something he'd regret. Fuu said something he would later regret. "Oh, I know that I can't dissect things. I don't want to be a surgeon. I want to be a gynecologist."

The teacher was silent for a moment at that, and then she pointed at the door. "Out! Get out, Fuu! Go to the principal's office!"

Fuu's mouth dropped. He stood up, and began walking, though he protested all the way. "What? The principle's office? Come on, Miss! It's the first day!"

"Exactly! Maybe the principle can straighten you out for the rest of the term. Now go, Fuu!" The door clicked as Fuu shut it behind him, and the teacher sighed, sinking into her chair as far as she could. "I need to buy some more Tylenol."

"Look on the bright side," Kei said sweetly, putting down the syllabus. "At least Neji isn't here. He burned and broke more things than Fuu-sama and I put together."

* * *

Walking home on the first day of school to Fuu's house, Kei looked up at him. They had walked in silence for most of the way, until Kei spoke. "What you said to the teacher in science class… were you being serious, or were you just trying to get her riled up?" 

"Do you mean about being a doctor or being a gynecologist?" he asked, smiling down at her and laughing a little bit.

For once Kei wasn't moved by the sight of one of his rare, _real_ smiled or the sound of his laughter. Her grey eyes narrowed a little, and eventually she shrugged. "Both, I suppose. I mean, I told you about how I wanted to study kinesiology, but you've never told me what you wanted to do."

"Actually," he admitted after a moment. "I would like to be a doctor. I'd to help people, and I could do that by being a doctor. I rather like helping people. But don't go telling anybody about it, Konseki-san." He glanced down at her, giving her a flattering smile. "It might ruin my image."

"You mean the image of you being a perverted, womanizing geek who happens to be stupidly good at martial arts?"

He laughed and tweaked her ear. "That's exactly what I mean, Kei."

Before she could correct him—her hand was already in the act of raising to slap him as she normally did for being disrespectful and pissing her off on purpose—he moved. Rather than move away from the incoming blow, Fukou moved into it, taking her by her shoulders and looking at her. It confused Kei, until she noticed that he wasn't really looking _at_ her, he was really looking right above her, at her ponytail.

"Fuu-sama?"

He didn't respond. Instead, his warm hands lifted from her shoulders and pulled at the white ribbon that was holding up her ponytail. Her black hair fell around her neck and shoulders. It was well past her shoulders. Her hair fell perfectly straight, light and airy. Fukou thread the fingers of one of his hands into her hair, feeling the silky strands slip through his fingers as he brushed her hair. His other hand held tightly to the white ribbon.

"Your hair grew longer."

She didn't have the heart to tell him that she had been growing it out since her first day of high school. It had been long for months now, but just the fact that he had noticed was enough for him. Kei had to remind herself to breathe. It wasn't just the touch that made her feel as if she had bolts of electricity jumping in and out of her body, it was the way he held his head as he looked at her, the way his eyes roamed over her face, watching her.

He wasn't smiling anymore, but she didn't even seem to register that. He looked serious, and he eventually pulled his hand back. "It looks good on you," he said casually, turning away and walking away again.

At that moment, Kei was so happy she didn't even notice that he hadn't given her back the ribbon.

* * *

Several weeks later, Fukou opened a wooden chest on his dresser. It had been a gift from Jou when he had been ten years old, and had been meant to store things for pranks, like water balloons. Now that he was a teenager, it had turned into something a little more sentimental. He kept something in there from each of the girls he had ever dated. In a way, it was a little bit like a box of conquests. 

Now, of course, Fukou hardly thought of Kei like a conquest. He completely denied having any interest in her at all—though to say that in the first place, it was admitting that he did have some kind of feeling for her and that he was trying to cover it up. The simple fact of the matter was that he didn't have anywhere else to keep the white ribbon he had lifted from her that day.

Pulling out the ribbon, he reclined on his bed, looking at the ribbon. It was a simple little thing. No doubt she had made it herself by stealing ribbon from her mother's sewing chest. Yet though simple, it evoked something in Fukou. Holding it, rubbing it between his fingers, it brought images and scents to his mind that he didn't remember. It felt as if he had once known a girl, around Kei's age, which was then almost seventeen, who also wore her hair in a ponytail and held in place with a white ribbon. But it had been styled differently, and this girl's hair was browner in his memories, and not as black as Kei's.

But, as his mind always did when he thought of this girl buried deep in his memories, it warned him away, lest he bring up bad memories. Not just bad memories, but _painful_ ones. He knew that there were memories left unlocked in his mind, and that the key to opening them sat beside him every day in science class, but Fukou knew that if he opened them, it would bring back bad memories.

He had enough of those in his life already.

Unable, however, to part with the ribbon just yet, he crept under the covers of his bed and wrapped the ribbon around his hand, falling asleep holding it. Perhaps because of this, for the first night since his father had died, he had good dreams when he slept. He dreamt of the girl he dared not remember. They were happy memories, which vanished in the first rays of the dawn, allowing him to wake up without any knowledge of the memories stirring in his mind.

* * *

The school term seemed to fly by. They went to class, they studied together and hung out with their friends. Fuu went to work, they did homework, and they trained. Life became routine. It probably would have been boring, but for the fact that the group of five friends remained stitched together. The days could hardly be mundane with Jou's pranks, Fuu's quick tongue, Kei and her wonderful maternal streak, Shin's tender gestures, and Neji's sarcasm. 

Before she knew it, it was Kei's seventeenth birthday. A wonderful party was planned, without Kei's knowledge. It was, of course, all Jou's idea. Though he had grown out of plastic spiders or gluing seats, he still loved pranks, and they had become more and more intricate. He had also learned to be more careful about who he picked as targets for his pranks. While Jou had to admit that dying the grass purple after the female gym teacher had rather unjustly ridiculed Kei for being the only girl on the martial arts team—she had gotten used to such remarks, but the occasional comment, as few and far between as they were, didn't hurt her was a blatant lie—was a great prank, but Kei's surprise party was his pride and joy.

The event was a smashing success. People that Kei barely even knew were there, and she clung to Jou and Shin. Neji and Fukou were busy circulating the room, flirting with all the pretty girls, but she was too happy to pay attention to Fukou and the way he interacted with the women. The dim lights of the room and the pounding music were enough of a distraction. Kei had never remembered so wonderful a birthday. The best part was that after everyone left around midnight, the party continued with their intimate group, and the gifts were rolled out.

Shin insisted that he opened his gift first, and when she found that he had bought her silky grey blouse the same shade as her eyes, Jou smacked him lightly. "Thanks for raising the bar for all the rest of us," Jou muttered.

"Aw, shut up, Jou," Shin hissed, rubbing his head.

"I swear to god, you're so positively gay, Shin," Neji teased from his spot on the couch beside Kei.

His closeness made Kei feel nervous. He had his arm draped on the couch behind her. His arm wasn't really touching her, but every once in a while he would wiggle his fingers and Kei would feel his fingertips brush her hair, or her ear. She shuddered each time he did it, and she kept looking pleadingly across the room at Fuu, who was folded in a chair with his arms crossed over his chest. He looked reserved, and with his monotone black clothes, he didn't even look like he belonged in a party atmosphere. Kei thought he looked like some reserved prince of the Underworld, but his laughter was infectious. He was such a delightful mixture of opposites…

'I wish that he would give me a kiss tonight,' she thought, looking away from him once more. 'That would be the best gift at all.'

"Well," Shin said, "If I'm gay, _you_ would be the best person to know, wouldn't you, Neji?"

They broke into laughter, but Neji looked pissed. His eyes narrowed at Shin. "I like women," he growled.

Shin crossed his arms, glaring back, though it wasn't as effective as he kept smiling. "It's just overcompensation."

Before a major battle could erupt, Kei smiled her sweetest smile and made Neji stop in his tracks. Unbeknownst to her, Fuu was grinding his teeth, furious at the way she was smiling at Neji. Suddenly all he wanted to do was punch his male companion. Tilting her head to the side, her long hair fell almost to her elbow. "Neji, please don't fight on my birthday."

Jou jumped into the conversation again, as Neji was left speechless by her plea and expression. He gave her his birthday gift eagerly, smiling. She laughed when she opened it. "_The Art of War_!" she smiled over at Jou. "Kistune-kun, how did you know I needed a new copy of this?"

He smiled at her and leaned over, tweaking her nose. "I know these things. It's my job of being your best friend, Kei-chan." Kei's smile at him wasn't stupidly sweet. It was natural, and filled with undying love. Fuu's teeth were mashed together now. Why couldn't she ever look at _him_ like that? It wasn't fair!

"Here Kei," Neji handed her his gift. "Open mine next. I'm getting impatient."

Kei opened the gift, and it took her breath away. It was a tiny box, and inside was a simple silver bracelet. It was just a band of silver, and she didn't even dare touch it. She felt she had been suddenly launched into a dream, and that Fuu would lean over and kiss her cheek as he had once did and everything would be perfect. But it wasn't Fuu who leaned over, it was Neji, and though he didn't kiss her, it was his breath that warmed her cheek and made her want to hide behind the couch.

"I can't accept something like this," Kei said, closing the box and trying to hand it back to him.

Neji pushed the box back. "Yes, yes you can. I want you to have it. You're seventeen. You're practically an adult now, Kei. You can accept something like this and wear it now. You can do everything, Kei."

After a moment or two of further argument, Kei was persuaded to keep the gift, and she looked over to see what Fuu's reaction was to Neji's gift. She had always felt that there was an animosity between them, an even greater one than the one between Fukou and Jou over who was the better prankster, or between herself and Fukou over who did better in science. It might have been perverse to see what his reaction was, as if she was proving something to him, that she wasn't his… but whatever emotion had made her look up to see Fukou was forgotten when she found that he wasn't there. During her argument with Neji, he had snuck out.

"I should go and find him," she said, standing up.

Jou shook his head, glancing at his watch. "Don't bother, Kei. It's two am. The party's over. This was as late as I was allowed to have it. Your parents are going to be here any minute to come and get you."

She smiled at him, carefully packing up her gifts. "Fuu-sama wouldn't leave me," she said, filled with pride and trust. "He's my ride home. His mother leant him the car because he had that job interview to go to, remember? Fuu-sama's probably just in the car waiting."

"Well, if he's in the car waiting, then you don't have to worry about helping us clean up," Shin said, taking the bag of garbage from her and starting to throw out pizza-covered paper napkins. "Go out and get in the car with him. He's probably tired. I'm a little surprised at how quickly he was able to drive by himself. I mean, if my father…"

"I know," Kei said, agreeing with him on the undisclosed subject matter. "But Fuu-sama believes in himself and his abilities. He's a wonderful, cautious driver. That's why my parents trust him enough to drive me home after parties. I'll see you guys on Monday, right?"

"Of course," Jou laughed. "Don't keep him waiting!"

Grabbing her belongings, Kei said a quick goodbye to Jou's parents, thanked her friends once more for their wonderful gifts, and she hurried outside. The car was already running when she went outside, and the lights had gone off on the inside. They went on again as she opened the door, and revealed Fuu sitting in his seat, his arms crossed over the steering wheel as he stared ahead, looking furious. She always felt a little nervous when she saw Fukou looking mad. He didn't look _right_ mad. He looked _right_ when he smiled.

"Fuu-sama?" she asked. Her voice was inaudible over the music he had playing. It was heavy metal, or maybe rock. Kei honestly didn't know, but the lyrics were mad, angry words, that seemed to suit his mood exactly. She reached out and went to turn down the radio so that he could hear her, but his hand caught hers. She looked over at him to see that he was staring at the silver bracelet she was wearing. Neji had put it on her. It felt like it weighed a ton, and she had meant to take it off as soon as she had left, but she had been so busy rushing out after Fukou that she had forgotten.

His green eyes darkened as he looked at it. His upper lip curled in disgust, and then he dropped her hand, practically flinging it back into her lap. He turned off the radio himself. For a moment they sat there in silence, and then he started the car. She jumped when his arm brushed her hair as he reached around the passenger side seat, backing out of the drive way.

"I hope you had a good party."

"I did," Kei said, subtly slipping the bracelet off and putting it away. He didn't even seem to notice, which was glad. He looked… he had looked _jealous_ when he saw that she was wearing Neji's gift. It wasn't so much the expression he had worn that had disturbed her, it was that part of her was actually wishing that he had been truly jealous, that he cared for her so much he was stupidly protective of her. Of course, if that was the case, she would have struck him lightly, given him a warning blow for being an idiot, and she would have told him that in so many words.

But, oh, how she would have loved for him to be just the slightest bit protective of her, the way he had been when they were little. She wanted to be able to fight her own battles, not to be some protected little princess, but if he was there to help her, to be her back up, she would fight with so much vigor and talent!

They drove to Kei's house in silence. When they pulled into the driveway, Fukou killed the engine, silencing the radio once and for all. He turned to her. She hadn't moved since he had last looked at her.

"I'm sorry for running out like that. I needed some time to cool down."

"Because you were jealous?" she asked, hating herself for sounding a little hopeful.

He nodded, and for a moment her heart leapt unchecked, and then it stopped when he said, "I was jealous of Neji's gift because it makes mine look like shit."

Her hopes had just been broken on his dashboard. She looked away from him, lying to him and telling him that she understood perfectly what he meant, but she didn't. She had thought that he had been jealous of her, that she had been the center of attention in Neji's world and he was jealous that someone would think of her in that way. That someone else might think of her as being more than a friend…

She suddenly wanted him to not only be behind her, but in front her, keeping people who unsettled her from getting too close, from ever being in the spotlight like that again. For a moment, she had been the only person in Neji's world and she had hated it. She mentally cried out to Fuu: 'Please! Save me! Protect me! Be my knight in shining armor and keep me from ever feeling cared for by anyone! I know who it is that I'm meant to love, but if you don't love me, then I don't want anyone else to ever think of me any romantic way!'

Fukou knew she was lying to him. He reached out, lifting her chin so that she was looking at him again. "No, Kei, you don't know what I mean. Money's tight right now. You know that. I wanted to get you something nice, but, well… open the glove box." He let go of her resumed his position of arms crossed and leaning against the driver's side door, watching her.

Interest piquing, she opened the glove box and found a small package in there waiting for her. It was still wrapped, but the small bow that had once decorated it had been torn off. There were two thin rips in the wrapping paper, where it had torn when the bow had been ripped away. She thought it looked like the most beautiful gift in the world, and she picked it up carefully.

"You have to promise not to laugh," Fukou said, suddenly lunging across the car and grabbing her wrist. His hand was warm, and she felt every inch of skin that he was touching absorb that wonderful heat.

"I won't laugh," she promised him. She turned back to the package, and opened it carefully, peeling off the tape that bound the package and folding the wrapping paper up so she could keep it hidden away. The package was one she recognized. She had used it for his birthday. Now he was giving it back to her. Inside the package was a vial of white liquid. A jasmine leaf floated inside of the package. She opened it, smelling it. It smelled like the soft scent of jasmine. It was her favorite scent. Beside the vial was a pair of earrings, drops of amber.

She didn't know why, but she had always loved amber.

She swallowed. It was hard to breathe. Kei looked up at Fuu, who seemed surprised to see that there were tears in her eyes. "You made me massage oil for my hands, and gave me earrings. They're in my favorite scent and my favorite rock. Or gemstone, or whatever amber is. How could I not have found this a wonderful gift, Fuu?"

He blushed at hearing his name. "Because," he said, looking away. "I found the earrings in a discount store and I made the oil. I didn't even make it on my own. I had to get Kagome-sama to help me."

"That just makes it all the more special," Kei sniffed, trying very hard not to laugh. Sometimes, Fukou was just so _cute_.

His eyebrows raised, and he was shocked to find that she was crying. He stopped leaning on the door and leaned closer to Kei, leaning his hand on the edge of his seat. He reached out, but he didn't touch her. "Kei, Kei why are you crying?"

"You're so stupid, Fuu!" she cried, putting his gifts down and covering her face from his prying eyes. She sniffled and wiped her cheeks. "Didn't anybody ever tell you that it's the thought that counts and not the price of the gift? You _made_ me something. You made me something I could use. You took time for me. And what's even better, Fuu, is the fact that you… you gave me a gift that tells me that you… that you actually see that I'm a _girl_…"

She had said it quietly, but he still heard. Kei thought he didn't know she was a girl? It was painfully obvious at times! Sometimes, he wanted to just walk up to her and kiss her, and sometimes, he wanted to cut her from his life. But those were girls for you. He… he had never made a move on her because… he was scared. What happened if she turned out to be like all those other girls, who tried to use him for their own gains: to increase their popularity, for his kisses, for his muscle… His father had always warned him about girls.

'And Kei told me not to listen to my father,' he reminded himself, the words finally coming back to him.

In the end, it wasn't her tears that snapped him back to reality, it was the fact that she looked over at him, and she _smiled_. It was that singularly spectacular smile that made a man feel singled out in the whole universe, it was the one she had given Jou, the one of undying friendship, the immortal smile. "Thank you, Fukou. You've given me the best gift of all."

They looked at each other a moment. Her hand lingered on the door handle to get out of the car. The air was silent between them. Fuu was _so close_ to leaning over and grabbing her and kissing her, and then she had to go and speak.

And he couldn't debate it anymore. She didn't get even one syllable into her goodbye and he reached out and grabbed her shoulders, and he drew her to him. Caught in surprise, her lips were parted, and he expertly tilted his head to the right angle so that his lips landed on hers. She made a muffled sound. Kei was finding this first kiss with Fukou so quick that she didn't even have time to close her eyes. She didn't even think about closing her eyes because the only thought running through her mind was:

'Fuu… Fuu…. Fuu-sama is kissing me!'

His lips mashed against hers, until he felt her body relax. Then his lips tenderly brushed hers. She pressed back gingerly, uncertain of what she was doing exactly. Her eyes finally closed, and she leaned against his body, breathing in his intoxicating scent. His warm tongue brushed her bottom lip, and she shivered away. That was when she heard _it_. She hadn't heard it since she was little, but it suddenly came back, as clear as if the deep, sensuous voice was whispering in her ear.

_Ah, Sango. It's done like this. Light, tender kisses to arouse the mind and the spirit. The deeper kisses are for instigating the passion, not the heart. Alternate between the two. After all, shouldn't we be joined together by both friendship and love?_

Her eyes snapped open, and she found herself pressed up against Fuu, who looked just as shocked as she did. He slowly let his hands fall from around her. She smiled at him, this one a confused shadow of the gorgeous smile he had seen a moment ago, and he watched her leave. After the door had shut, he touched his throbbing lips.

It had just been a simple kiss. He hadn't been rough with her, or overly intimate, he had barely even tasted her, and yet… his heart pounded, his hands were clammy. Why? 'Do I… do I love Kei? Is that why I feel this way after just one kiss? Do I… do I love Kei?'

He sat in the car a long time. Then he quietly backed the car out of the driveway, gripping the steering wheel tightly. 'I don't love anybody,' he told himself, driving away.

* * *

That night she changed for bed with shaking fingers. Only when she was in her pajamas, her clothes strewn about her room, did she finally dare think the thoughts that had been prancing around in her head. "I knew his kiss. He'd never kissed me before, but I knew it, exactly. Why? Why did I know it? What… what's wrong with me?" 

Clutching her head, she curled up into a ball, falling into a fitful sleep plagued by a variety of dreams.

* * *

To be continued... 


	14. Memories

**AN:** Okay, so this chapter kind of goes against some basic ideas of reincarnation. Why? Because I like breaking rules. Sure, apparently people aren't supposed to remember their past lives. Why? Simple. Because they would understand themselves more, in my opinion. They would have knowledge of themselves, of life, and skills which they necessarily shouldn't have. It would, in a sense, make them more enlightened. But becoming enlightened is the entire point behind meditation, no? So, what can you therefore rationalize? That, if a soul is reincarnated, that meditation might be a way to regain your lost memories and therefore help you on your path to enlightenment and that therefore remembering your old memories is not only possible, but therefore a god thing.

Confused? Don't be. Just trust me that in my warped since of logic, it makes sense.

Of course, if you want something besides my warped sense of logic, there's always the wish Kagome made on the Shikon Jewel which you can claim allowed Sango and Miroku to reveal themselves, but I'm trying to stay away from that answer.

Aamalie: You aren't really supposed to like Neji. It's all…. Yeah. (_shudders_) But on that note, does anyone remember what hair color/eye color Neji has? Come on… guess, don't look! And I loved the kiss scene as well. My god! It was so much fun to write! I was giggling and laughing and plotting evilly all at the same time. I love it when things come together like that.

Lunar Paradise: it's okay. My computer is stupid and doesn't want to show me reviews or updates.

Stripe: I suppose I should have been more explicite with the part that confused you. In the first car was a driver. He is in critical condition, and no one else was in the car with him. In the other car was Fuu's mom, dad, and Wolfsbane, and the latter two both died. Hope that makes it a little clearer, because it doesn't contradict itself, it's kind of impossible to be in critical condition and be dead on impact.

Becca: They will see everything from dreams to full out hallucinations! You've hit the nail on the head.

Ungu petite: No, that's the real Ayame and Kouga.

All Smile: As you will see, it does cause some turbulence, but I don't think Neji ever finds out about that kiss.

Chadrific: I am glad that I helped perk up your life. And trust me, I know about the oblivious thing. If it helps, as a warning, it can take a long time to… be not oblivious about. In this specific example, a girl liked a boy for seven years. He's dated her best friend, a close friend, and an old friend, but she still liked him. And then, almost eleven months ago, she found out he had felt the same way about her. It took them seven _years_, but they have now almost been dating for the past eleven months. And I know for a fact that the girl is stupidly happy. It was worth waiting for. The best things always are.

Fred the Mutant Pickle: Neither can I. Stupid smile refusing to go away… I mean, smiling is good, but this one is a little unnerving.

Starzki: I don't know. I mean, fumbling through something together the first time is always cute too. And I think that no matter how much experience the guy has, or the girl as the case may be, if you really, _really_ like someone, you still get nervous and you don't necessarily kiss/grope/perform, whatever, as well as you normally would.

Zoku: Ah… that was sarcasm, right? About updating? I try to update this story every week.

Siren: Oh, they are totally going to have some rivalry going on. And it was cute.

Fireblade: Ah! Get out of my head!

Serena: Wait. How were Shin and Jou just "sort of" "okay"? I love those two! There's so great! (_huggles__ Shin and Jou_)

Hououza: I think he faces it in about two chapters. And isn't every kiss a little bit frightening and wonderful at the same time? I mean, sure, you love it, but at the same time, you're wondering about your breath… I kid, I kid. But really, your review and the expectations you mentioned make this chapter feel… somehow inadequate, because nothing really changes.

Iggy: I love you. You're so excitable. I swear that having you and Margo poke me is what distracts from my homework. Not that that's a bad thing because I'M ALL DONE EXAMS! (_dances_) But… there will be much fluff. Yes, there will be.

Fantastical Queen: Agreed with the ribbon thing. I kind of didn't want to put that part in, but at the same time, I think it's a wonderful demonstration of Fuu's eccentricity and the fact that his subconscious already treasures Kei, even though he doesn't know it yet. It's also supposed to compliment when they were little kids and he kept her umbrella.

OMG… long AN this time. I need to shut up more. Enjoy, everyone!

"Memories,

All alone in the moonlight

I can smile at the old days.

I was beautiful then.

I remember the time I knew what happiness was.

Let the memories live again."

Memories, Cats

* * *

Chapter Fourteen: Memories

Images floated through Kei's mind. She saw a two tailed housecat suddenly become enclosed in flame to emerge as a huge monster… and yet she felt this unconditional love for the creature, this urge to hold it close and protect it; she felt _safe_ with it.

She saw a boy, with freckles and his hair up in a ponytail. The weapon he held looked frightening. But she didn't feel fear. She felt infinite sadness, as if this boy, or something about him, had left an unhealed hole in her heart. The image of the boy grew and spread until a man stood in front of her, a hoe in his hand instead of his frightening weapon, and still the sadness remained. She was happy for him. She smiled as she watched him pick up a little girl who looked very much like him, but the happiness was only hiding the lingering pain.

She saw Kagome, and Inuyasha, though they looked younger. She watched them fight and grow older, until they looked like she remembered them when she had first met them, and Inuyasha was proudly holding his daughter on his broad shoulders. Kagome smiled and picked up some weird looking child, and Kei saw his back paws and realized she was looking at an authentic kitsune.

Kei was confused. What were these people doing in her dreams? She was struggling to wake up, struggling to find an explanation for it, and then she heard his voice. It was the voice that had graced her dreams all those years ago: the fluid, effortless voice that would make the girls she knew melt and swoon. She heard him laughing, the sound so clear, the sound so treasured in the depths of her heart, that it was covering up whatever it was he was saying as basked in it.

She stopped fighting the dream. The night-world closed in on her again, and she relaxed in it, relaxing in the warmth of the man's deep voice. She breathed in deeply, and felt like she was snuggling into the world's best pillow. Opening her eyes, she looked up and found herself held in the arms of the owner of the voice. She felt herself start to blush, but she didn't feel shy or nervous, or ashamed… she felt happy. She couldn't stop smiling.

Everything about him was perfect. She loved the way his smile was a little suggestive, and yet somehow he managed to keep himself looking completely innocent. His soft-looking hair was pulled back into a tight ponytail, his bangs falling gently into his eyes. His eyes were soft, a shade of violet-grey that appeared warm and seem to hold her in high regards. He was tall, but he held himself taller. There was a wit about him. The intelligence in the eyes and the slight smirk in his smile promised laughter and teasing remarks. He was perfect. Everything about him made her say: yes, this is the man from my dreams, only he could own that voice.

Reaching her hand up, she stroked the curve of his cheek. She lifted it higher and brushed his dark bangs away from his face. Kei stared deeply into his eyes, trying to remember who he was, why this monk—she realized it was a monk after she looked down at his robes—made her feel so happy and relaxed. She didn't want to run away or kiss him. She found herself just being happy being held by him and looking at him.

"Who are you?" she wondered out loud, looking perplexed.

The man laughed. "Don't you remember me, Sango?"

"But… my name's not Sango. My name is…"

"Kei," a new voice said. The man vanished, and Kei turned to see a woman walking towards her. No, not a woman. The female held herself like an adult, levelly meeting everyone's eyes, but she was only a little older than Kei. She had dark brown hair that hung in a ponytail, and wore some strange armor that seemed a little familiar. Kei knew the names for all the armor, and she knew that there was a knife hidden in the woman's left arm. "_Your_ name is Kei," the woman continued. "_My_ name is Sango."

"What exactly is going on here?" Kei asked, glad that her subconscious was finally giving her someone she could talk to and who would answer back.

The woman shook her head, holding up a hand in warning. She wore a gold wedding band, Kei noticed. "Don't. Don't question. We always did question everything in our mind, but we went along with the flow. Like water. We were born in a time of water. That's part of why we were called Sango. We have to flow with that water now. Let the current pull us along. Flow in and an out of your memories, Kei."

She shook her head. "But, I don't understand!"

"You aren't supposed to. You aren't even supposed to be remembered. But you have to remember me, Kei. You have to remember the Sengoku Jidai and what happened in that time. They won't all be happy memories, Kei, but there are good times as well. No matter how bad the memories are that you see, there are happy memories right around the corner."

"What?" Kei wanted to curl up, no, to fight and rouse the answer from her mind. "Why do I have to do _anything_?"

"You have to do it for him," she said. Beside the woman, the man formed again. His arm was wrapped around Sango's shoulder, his head resting on hers. They looked like the perfect couple. "He's fading from us, Kei. I'm only memories. But you can do something to save him. I don't want to see anything bad happen to him, Kei, and neither do you. You can at least feel that much, can't you?"

Kei nodded. She didn't want anything to happen to the man with the smooth voice. She wanted him to be real. She wanted to be where Sango was, and feel that warmth around her. Kei rubbed the back of her neck anxiously, shifting her weight a little. After gazing at the man a moment longer, she looked at the woman named Sango. "I am your reincarnation. I was you once. We're the same person."

The woman smiled patiently. "We're the same soul, not the same person. Our experiences in life were different, and so we are two different people. But we share the same qualities, deep down. We both keep fighting, no matter what. We want to learn. We'll fight for the people we love. We can be quiet, and yet we won't be afraid to speak out amongst our friends, and we are attracted to one soul, and only to one soul." She looked up at the man who stood beside her. "His soul."

Kei sighed. She had to be crazy. She had to be! But… all those years ago, she had sat there after nightmares she couldn't explain, yearnings she couldn't understand…

_Do you believe in reincarnation, Fuu-sama?_

"Okay. What do I do?"

* * *

It was four am, if the alarm clock could be believed. Kei was in her bed, on her back, staring up at the ceiling with one hand draped over her forehead. Her head hurt a little from the memories she had just reawaken. She had forty-six years of new—or was it old?—memories in her mind, besides the ones she had already made in her new lifetime. As Sango had directed, Kei had given up her questions and had let the memories wash over, losing herself in the current, and when she awoke she felt… strange.

She didn't feel different, she felt better. All the bits of pieces in her life finally made sense. She remembered how she had once been buried alive, which explained why she was so afraid of claustrophobic spaces. She remembered her treasured brother, and how she had fight so hard to save him, which explained why she was always attracted to amber jewelry. His name had meant 'amber'. It was like she had captured a piece of her brother to keep him close to heart even five hundred years later, and when she reflected back on it, amber was exactly the same shade as the flecks in his eyes.

She knew why she had always been attracted to shrines. She had always been expecting to meet Miroku at a shrine again. Miroku. She loved the name. Miroku. She knew why she had always felt comfortable around Kagome, and why she had always looked up to Inuyasha, why she had been able to fight even when she had been untrained. or why she had always wanted a cat as a pet.

Everything, everything made sudden sense. It was… amazing. It was no wonder people weren't supposed to remember their past lives! She felt like her whole mind had just opened up!

Of course, there were bad things too, but that was okay. She had good memories to ease over their pain, and when she looked back on some of those traumatic events, back to the times where she wondered if she would ever have her brother back, or when Naraku seemed just out of grasp, she could console herself. 'I don't have to be scared of him anymore. He's dead. He can't hurt us. My brother lived a long and happy life. My brother had children. Everything worked out wonderfully.'

So then, if everything had worked out so perfectly, then where was Miroku's soul, and why was she supposed to save it?

* * *

There were some side effects. In class she had looked up when her teacher had been talking about corals and had looked up when she thought she had heard her old name. Fukou continually commented that she had been acting weird, and that she seemed jumpier than normal. Kei had glared at him. She couldn't remember glaring at him and having it suddenly work, but it did. He actually cringed and looked away.

"What's the matter with you, Konseki-san?" he muttered under his breath, propping his book up and hiding behind it. He didn't want to get in trouble for talking in class. He studied her a moment, his green eyes hidden from the reflection of his glasses. "There's most definitely something different with you. It's like… like you suddenly just matured or something."

"Are you saying I wasn't mature before?" she hissed.

Fukou frowned. "That wasn't what I meant, Kei, and you know it."

She stared at him a moment longer. "You're right," she said. "I apologize."

"Now I know something's wrong. You never apologize!"

She hissed a little lower, grabbing a pencil and shaking it warningly. "Shut up, Fuu-sama."

He stared at her a moment longer, and then he went back to his biology lessons.

There was something wrong with Kei. No, not necessarily wrong, because the changes he saw in her certainly weren't bad, they were just… changes, and so it took a little while to become accustomed to them. He sat uncomfortably on the stool in the science lab as the teacher talked about muscle structure of the back, and of some of the major muscle structures.

Had she changed because of something he had done? Had something been wrong with the kiss he had given her over the weekend? Had she hated it? Had she not wanted to be kissed? Had she been waiting for someone else, and that was why she hadn't reciprocated it? Had… had… 'Why the _hell_ did I kiss her?' he complained to himself. 'If I hadn't kissed her, nothing would have changed!'

Fukou was still in a daze when he and Kei parted ways and he went to history class. Frankly, Fuu hated history class. He had a tendency to either fall asleep in it, or to get on to the wireless internet he had on his laptop and started reading lemons or looking up hentai. There was a reason why he'd sprung for the wireless internet, as well as why he sat in the back of the class.

He sat down in his usual seat, and glanced out the window. It was a beautiful day. The gym class was outside doing stretches. He recognized an all too familiar ponytail tied with a white ribbon, and a shorter, muscular frame. He also recognized the wide eyed girl who was made of up nothing but soft, sensuous curves and had a bounce in her hair that Kei's lacked. He heard someone make a sound of approval as the girls stretched below their window. He looked up to find that he wasn't the only one watching the girls exercise.

"She's pretty hot," one boy commented.

"Oh, which one?" asked the other male.

"You know who," laughed the first male. He turned to look at Fukou. "Fuu, that one with curly hair is the one that you're dating, right?"

Fuu nodded. Her name was Miaka, and yes, he was dating her, if dating could be called hanging out together and making out like it was nobody's business. It was fun, and gratifying, and he was starting to develop a secretive reputation for being great in the sack, but… it wasn't what he was found himself wanting as of late. He wasn't missing things like dates, movies, because he never wanted those. Dating was a way of spending money to find out that you didn't like somebody. He wanted conversation. He didn't just want to make out with somebody, he wanted an intimacy beyond the physical layer…

Hell, he wanted somebody to come up, turn his world upside down, and rip away the wall he had built up around himself. He wanted excitement. He wanted a challenge. Miaka had proved to be a challenge, at first. But as of late, he had become bored with her.

"So the one beside her is Kei. I heard that Kei's never dated anyone, you know that? All the other girls, they talk about wanting to date somebody, about the people they have crushes on, but Kei, she just talks about school and sports and stuff. She's like a guy, but with breasts. It's great!"

The second boy leered at Kei, trying to imagine her without her baggy gym shirt on. "You mean that under that there's actually a female figure?"

"Well, I think so. I've never actually bothered to look, myself. But I'm feeling good today. I passed my test, I got a great mark on an essay… maybe I'll go talk to her, put on the old charm and stuff. I bet I could sweep her off her feet."

Fou was very slowly getting _very_ mad. Why was he so protective of Kei all of a sudden? Oh, who was he kidding! He'd always been protective of Kei, but all of a sudden, it wasn't just protecting her from physical harm, he was protecting her from males.

Before he could retaliate, the class started, and much to his disappointment, a pop quiz was passed out. He looked at the contents and sighed, pulling out a pen and writing his name at the top in neat, precise writing. It was from the stuff they had learned on Friday, about the sengoku jidai. He hadn't been paying attention. He'd been far too busy worrying about whether or not Kei would like her gift.

As he read the question, he found the answers coming to his mind. These questions were simple. He buzzed through the questions easily, never stopping to consider why they seemed so simple to him.

* * *

That night, he went to bed and he had the worst nightmares in his entire life. He dreamed he was running from somebody, and his whole body was wracked with pain.

_His arm felt swollen, and a red-hot knife in his body kept stabbing towards his heart. His breathing was heavy as he ran, and when he stopped, he leaned against a tree, trying to stop whatever it was that was trying to pierce his heart by clutching at his chest._

_He looked around himself, and found that he was in a strange wood. He was holding a staff in the hand that wasn't throbbing painfully. He gave it a test swing, and the chime of the staff was familiar. He grinned. He could use this. He knew how. Whatever was chasing him was going to get a hell of a surprise!_

_'Stop running from me!' a voice shouted in the distance. Fukou looked around him, trying to find the source of it. It was obviously the voice of a male. Fuu got ready to swing the staff when he heard the footsteps approach. He jumped out of the bushes, and stopped._

_He was looking at himself. He found himself looking at a mirror image of him, from the disorderly hair, to the glasses, to the jade-green eyes. The only difference was that this version of him looked pissed off instead of confused. The both wore robes, and this version of him also held a staff, but he wasn't ready to use it as a weapon._

_They stared at each other, and then suddenly the other Fuu whipped the staff around, lightly hitting Fuu on the head with it. 'Stop ignoring me!' he shouted. 'You can't keep running from me forever, Fuu!'_

_'Yes, I can,' Fukou thought, shaking his head and backing up. He had figured it out when he had been very young, when Kei had asked if he believed in reincarnation. He did, and that's when he figured it all out. He had been reincarnated… but he refused to go digging deeper into the matter anymore. It scared him. He knew he shouldn't go digging into his old self, why he dare not find out more about. Something bad had happened to him in that past life. No, not something bad, a lot of bad had happened to him. If he went digging into his memories, he would surely find tons of bad things, things he didn't want to live through or remember…_

_Like something about his hand…._

_Something about the wind…_

_Something about spiders…_

_Something about the girl with the ponytail…_

_And something about her, about the girl that he hadn't been able to defend…_

_"No. No! NO! I'm not going to remember, and you can't make me!"_

_'But it's important, Fukou…'_

_"I DON'T WANT TO!"_

_The other him vanished. He was left alone in the woods, clutching his head and trying to ignore all of the sounds and images floating through his mind. His jaw was clenched, his teeth aching and his head pounding. He fell to the ground, fighting it as he always had._

_And then, for a moment, he saw her, the girl with the ponytail. Somehow, his eyes had managed to squeeze themselves open, and she was there, bending over him. She smiled at him softly, offering him a hand up. She didn't speak. She barely even moved. He would have thought she was frozen if her hair hadn't been floating gently in the breeze. The wind didn't seem threatening when she was around. Slowly, her eyes widened as she looked down at him worriedly. She didn't retract her hand, she just looked at him quizzically, trying to figure out why he wasn't taking her hand. Her brown eyes were soft and warm, but hurt, and his heart ached that he had made such a beautiful angel look sad. 'Don't you want to come with me, Miroku?'_

_For a moment, she had caught him. A moment longer of silence, of just looking at each other, and he would have opened up to her, but instead he suddenly become angry. "No! No, I don't want to remember, and my name isn't Miroku! It isn't Miroku, or Napoleon, or Cleo-fucking-patra, I'm just Fuu! That's it! I don't want to come with you or anyone else! I don't even like girls! You're all… you're all just… just…. Just leave me alone!"_

The phone rang. On the very first ring, Fuu snapped awake. His hand was already groping for the receiver, even though his eyes weren't open. "Hello?" he asked in a dry, sleepy voice. He forced on eye awake and looked at the clock. 'Damn it. It's one am. I don't know what's worse. The fact that I went to bed two hours ago, or the fact that I have to be up in five hours.'

"Are you okay?"

"What? What? Oh, hi Kei. What are you doing phoning me at this late hour?" he asked. It was nice hearing her voice. She sounded different over the phone. Her voice sounded deeper, kind of husky. It was pleasant. He grabbed his comforter and pulled it higher, snuggling into his blankets and his pillow and holding the phone to his head by laying on it.

On the other end of the line, Kei was sleeping in almost the exact same position. She wasn't aware of how her whispering into the phone line made her voice sound a little seductive, and Fukou himself was too sleepy to notice. She hugged her stuffed teddy bear closer, wishing that Fuu still live right next door. If he did, then she could have gone over and hugged him and been there in person. "I just had a sudden urge to call you and ask if you were okay, that's all." The words 'sudden urge' were an understatement. It would have been more accurately described as a 'dying need'.

"Good," he said, chuckling a little as his eyes closed. "You woke me up from a bad dream."

"Oh? Do you want to tell me about it?"

"No. I mean, I would, but I can't remember it. But there was a girl there…"

Kei laughed. "You had a nightmare involving a _girl_, Fuu-sama?" He didn't answer, and she yelled at herself for having insulted him. After a moment of silence, she said tentatively, "I suppose I should hang up."

"No, don't. Just… talk a little bit more. Tell me about your dreams or something. Tell me a story, Kei. Just, don't go yet. Let me fall asleep listening to you. Then you can hang up, when I'm asleep." Kei was about to say no, and then she heard, "Please, Kei?"

There was such a need in that voice. It wasn't some request to later tease her about her crappy stories, it was a real request, a need that only she could fill at this point. Why her? Because he trusted her. Because he knew that she wouldn't laugh at his request. Because he knew that she would understand. Kei agreed, and searched her memories for a good story. "Well, once upon a time, in a distant future, there was a girl who was walking by a river, and she was thinking about a monk she had met in a not-so far away land, a very long time ago…"

* * *

The following morning, Kei was struggling with her bike and getting it down from the clips in the garage. It wasn't that she wasn't strong enough, it was a matter of height. All she could grab was the front wheel. She wasn't tall enough to get a firm grip on the crossbars and lift it down from the middle. Swearing, she ducked when the wheel swung free and the whole bike suddenly tipped.

A hand caught it before it hit her. Fuu stood in the Konseki's garage, laughing at Kei as she straightened from ducking. Other than the laughter, he silently brought down the bicycle for her.

"Thanks," she said, wheeling the bike into the driveway and checking it over, making sure the gears worked and that the wheels were full of air. Unsurprisingly, Fuu's bicycle leaned against the side of their house. Even more unsurprisingly, Fuu himself leaned against the house, watching her work. "What are you doing here?"

"It's a beautiful spring morning," he said, looking around at the sunny sky and the budding trees. "I figured that you'd be riding your bike, and seeing as how you're not far out of the way, I though I'd come by and we could go to school together."

If someone had asked Fuu if he thought he was thoughtful, he would have laughed at them and said that he had the thoughtfulness of an elephant. If somebody had asked Kei if Fuu had a thoughtful streak, she would have said yes, although it came out in odd ways. This was one of those odd ways. To Fuu, it felt like nothing, leaving the house a little earlier and coming to Kei's house, but to Kei it made her feel like the most important girl in Tokyo. He wasn't going to his girlfriend's house, he was just going to her house, for even just a little bit of time where they were alone, and together…

"Kei?" he asked, craning his neck to look at her as she struggled to get the chain back in place. "Kei, are you blushing?"

"No," she replied, even though she was. Fuu laughed at her, leaving the side of the house to come and kneel beside her. He lifted her face around to look at him. His fingers were warm against her chin, even though she knew her whole face was a bright shade of red.

His glasses were slipping down his nose, and his green eyes were visible. He looked like he was laughing, and then she saw it. There was a shadow of pain hiding in his eyes. It was there, flickering back and forth in the back of his eyes, out of sight and out mind, hiding behind the green veil that covered his eyes and acted as a shield, either glaring or laughing his problems away. Her mouth fell open a little bit as she stared at him, shocked, but he didn't notice. He was staring right back at her, unblinking, just staring at her as his chest would rise and then it seemed to stop, before he exhaled.

Her bottom lip began to shake nervously. She wasn't just nervous, she was furious, and hurt, and it was all hiding behind her surprise. His gentle fingers began to guide her forward, his lips parting as he tilted his face, leaning closer to her… she pulled her chin out of his hands and finished fixing her bike as her mother suddenly appeared from the house.

"Kei! You're going to be late! Hurry up and go!" Then her gaze darted over to see the boy kneeling beside her daughter and she smiled. "Oh, hello, Fuu-kun! I haven't seen you in a while now. I don't see your knapsack. Do you have a well balanced lunch with you? I have an extra here, if you want it."

He was about to refuse, but Kei nudged him. "You're lying, and I know you are, and so does she. Go and take the lunch, Fuu-sama."

"But…" he said, looking a little red-face and uncomfortable. "But _you_ always bring me my lunch, Konseki-san. I like your kissing." He then realized what he had said, and his cheeks burned deeper. "I meant cooking! Cooking! Aw, shit." He stood up and said to Kei's mother, "I would be more than welcome to take the lunch of your hands."

He disappeared inside and Kei threw her knapsack on, sitting on her bike and waiting for him. Part of her wanted to pick a fight and ask if something had been wrong with her kissing, or if it had been a Freudian slip, but she didn't want to know. He'd kissed lots of girl, despite how the kiss had been so shy it could have easily been his first. If she'd ask, he'd rub in the fact that he had a new girl every month by telling her every little thing that had been wrong with her kiss.

'And every one of those new girls,' she noted, 'were stupid, pretty girls with enough breast for them to not see their toes. That's why he's never looked at me. It's not that he doesn't see I'm a girl. I'm just not his style. I'm short and I certainly don't have breasts that large. Frankly, I'm not terribly endowed at all. I'm not some dumb ditz, I'm too smart at times for my own good. At least, that's what my teachers say. I'm too much like Fuu for him to even look at me romantically. It would be like someone being romantically interested in his own shadow. How creepy would that be!'

They started on their way a moment later, riding in silence. Then Fuu looked at Kei, grinning. "Let's race," he proposed, and she agreed by speeding up and cutting him off. They raced the rest of the way to school, made it there with forty seconds to spare, and then they got into a fight about which one of them had won, making them late. Their science teacher both gave them detentions for being late, but they didn't care.

* * *

Kei sat in her desk, copying notes, and wondering about Fuu. Had he suggested a race just to cheer her up? She glanced over at him and found him drawing a quick sketch of the fish they were dissecting with huge fish lips and outrageous make up and a string of pearls. He flashed her the picture, and Kei's sadness was again pushed back a little further away from the conscious part of her mind.

Miroku _was_ Fuu. She knew that after she had seen the same eyes, the eyes that laughed and teased to hide the underlying pain away. Somehow, she knew that she'd known Fuu was Miroku since she had gotten her memories back, and she had known that Fukou was the only boy for her since she had first met him, even if she had told him that she hated him. Kei could never hate him.

She just wished that it hadn't been him. Let it be Neji, because at least Neji liked her. Let it be quiet Shin; she would love to listen to his poems and gaze at his artwork all day. Better yet, let it be Jou who was Miroku, and then she would smile and laugh from his smiles and his antics until she died. Why, _why_ did it have to be Fuu?

'He doesn't even like me,' she thought, starting to fill out the lab report for their dissection. 'He doesn't have the slightest bit of interest in me. I'm not his type. But I was once. I was in the last life time. We were wonderful together, all those years ago. Why is it so different this time?'

"Are you okay, Konseki-san?" he asked, glancing at her. She seemed distracted.

Kei forced herself to smile at Fuu. "I'm fine, Fuu-sama."

'I'm just sad because the one person I was meant to be with is the one person who has hit on every single girl in the school _except_ me.' She started her dissection, acting like everything was normal when really, Kei felt like the school was falling down around her ears.

* * *

To be Continued...


	15. Eternal Flame

AN: I am happy. Why? Because I finally access reviews! So, time for a long AN to make up for my short ANs! Whee!

I have marks back already for school! Whee!  
I got into a bar without proper government issued ID! Whee!

It was my birthday and I cried a lot because people love me. What can I say? I am the only girl whose 21st birthday rolls around and I break down into tears in the middle of a Canadian Tire because of my father's gift to me. Even now I'm still getting teary-eyed at it. Oy, enough about me and my last week! Moving on to responses because they will make me happy!

Oh… and I tried shark. So there's something else I've always wanted to do crossed off my list. (Can you believe that shark is actually cheaper than salmon? What's up with that?)

Fireblade: Actually… I don't think that Fuu asks Kei to bear his children at all. But there will be a lot more groping. As Kei's personality matures a lot, and the same time starts becoming aware of her own sexuality, strengths, and displays of physical affection with Fukou, Fukou will start acting more like Miroku (in this case physical affection is returned and flirting commences) as an effect.

Siren: I don't see a lot of Jakotsu in Neji, as I haven't had the opportunity to really meet Jakotsu (although from the pictures I've seen of him, I wonder why I can't look as much like a girl as he does) but I agree that he is Kouga-esque. He's very territorial, arrogant, and competitive, all trademarks of Kouga. And don't worry. All of the slight changes Kei undergoes are all just normal changes in people as they grow up. Although she is very mature already… now she kind of learns how to loosen up.

Lily Thorne: She's annoyed with what her mission is. She doesn't know how to go about saving someone's soul. I mean, would you?

Hououza: I agree. Although perhaps to some people the insecurities shared by both Kei and Sango may become clichéd because of the simple fact that they are female, I think that they are very basic human insecurities, so I kept them.

Fantastical Queen: Haven't you ever thought about that before? I have. But I try not to think about it, in case I do remember. (_smiles_)

Blood Red Emerald: Don't worry. Fuu _will_ eventually remember. The key word is eventually. There are some… minor things to take care of first. Because I like the dilemma I have here: Kei is now wondering if she likes Fuu for who he was, or who he is. If Fuu regained his memories and accepted them right after Kei, then I lose that little bit of plot/character development. So don't hold your breath because it won't be resolved soon.

Serena: Actually, no, Sango is still alive in the Sengoku Jidai at this point. But in Kei's time, Sango is dead. In Kei's time, Sango has been dead for almost five hundred years. That's why she's just a memory. The best calculation I can do for their ages is this (as I suck at numbers!): Fuu is half a year older than Kei. Kei is a few months older than Kaede. Kaede is four years older than Arashi. Sango died when Arashi was sixteen. Therefore, when Fuu is 21, Arashi is sixteen, and Sango has died. However, for plot purposes, I smudged that. Yes, for the record, come the final chapters I will be more than aware of the plot hole involving ages. It was there because I didn't want this story continuing forever.

Chadrific: Would I let him disappear? Honestly! (_grins_)

Soli-chan: For the record, the part about stupid girls not able to see their toes were two different things. Fuu doesn't go after well endowed girls. He goes after _stupid_ well endowed girls. So please, don't take offense to it. And you should have people arrested for making you run a mile of physicals education. That's inhuman.

Lunar: _(looks at her chapters_) You have a long wait.

Starzki: I dunno… my first kiss had braces and almost cut me (and I think he also had a piece of Tostitos caught in them) but I still loved it. And if you find your way into my head and figure out how it's going to happen… I'm going to cry! I love my twsists!

BellFlower: So long as I am stocked with Inuyasha and I don't become too involved with Ichigo from _Bleach_, I think I can pump out a few more MS…. (Um… so long as I have a plot! O.o)

Iggy: I'm glad that you approve!

Monkgurl765: That's a very good question. I think the reason for it is because that while they were all friends in the Sengoku Jidai and they still have a friendship, they also all have their own lives. Kei's a thoughtful girl. I doubt that she wants to go and disturb Kagome just for romance advice. Besides, what can Kagome say that Sango didn't already hear five hundred years ago?

Kasai: Get better soon!

Pyrinsomniac: Also, as far as what I can recall about reincarnation, it doesn't always work out that well. Years are inconsistent. Someone could die and then be born years later, while their old lover is born twenty years before them, making a big age gap. So the chances of all of them being the same age is unlikely. Kei and Fuu are so close in age simply by chance. Mikaila is a god, yes. A tie between Jou and Shippo? (_whistles__ innocently_), there is a deeper purpose in trying to make Fuu regain his memories, but nothing will happen if they go down the well. The well only works for Kagome, Inuyasha, and Kaede. Why? Because that's just how the story worked. And thank you for the long review. It was awesome to read! Oh, and the Toblerone!

Ninalee-chan: Sango did, in fact, _not_ tell Kei why she needs to help Miroku! (g_rins_) The reason why is because Sango doesn't know. She was already dead when the traumatic event which needs rectifying occurred, therefore she doesn't know about it… because being dead doesn't make you omniscient. And I like how you put it. Sango gets to teach Miroku now… Bwa ha! (e_vil__ laughter_)

MagCat: No, they don't know. Their youngest kid is actually in University, making him much too old for Kei and Fuu to have ever met him.

_Enjoy!_

"Say my name. Sun shines through the rain. A whole life so lonely…  
And then you come and ease the pain.  
I don't want to lose this feeling.  
Close your eyes. Give me your hand.  
Do you feel my heart beating?  
Do you understand?  
Do you feel the same?"

"Eternal Flame", the Bangles

* * *

Chapter Fifteen: Eternal Flame

Kei and Fuu sat in the Konseki household, upstairs of Kei's bed. Books were spread out all along them and they were busy studying for their science final. They had spoken rarely since "everything" had happened. Kei had never told Fukou that she had liked his kiss, he had never tried to kiss her again. She was still rather shy around him because she wondered why she had told herself she needed to help him when he seemed perfectly fine, and he never told her that he was protective of her.

They were minute little details of their complex lives, but they were important. The bonds that held them together were slipping loose from around them, and it made Kei scared. She wanted to have her soul tied to his, but she didn't know how to get the bonds to pull closer.

"Name all of the muscles in your back," Fuu said, sipping his water and holding the textbook so that Kei couldn't see the answers. Kei stopped thinking about how cute he looked sitting cross-legged on her bed, his dark hair tousled, his glasses sliding down his nose, eating quietly. She loved how the sunlight slanted across his face. She thought it made him look very young.

When she heard his question, she frowned. "Don't you think that's a lot?" she asked him.

"Not really. You do it and then I'll see if I can do it."

Kei sighed and spread her hand, trying to count of all the muscles she could. She was able to name three before she accidentally repeated one of them and flustered. Looking down at the bed, she blushed. "It would help if I had a diagram or something to use, that way I know where they are too."

"Good idea," Fuu agreed. He slid the book off his lap. The next thing Kei knew, he was sliding off his black t-shirt, and Kei was turning into a tomato she was blushing so hard. She blinked, wondering what would happen if her parents came in and saw them like this. He carefully began folding the shirt up, placing it beside them on the bed. His movement, distracted Kei, who all of sudden felt she needed a bucket. She had never seen him bare chested, despite how much time they spend together. In a tank top, certainly, but never half naked.

It was glorious. She had never thought he would look so good… no, she knew he had to have a great muscle structure. He was a fighter, after all, and he had been since he was in grade two. She just never thought that she would find a boy's chest so very attractive. His skin was a beautiful shade, a little pale, but the sunlight turned it into a light peach color. But really, it was his muscle structure that she found attractive. He looked like some warrior from bygone days… which, she realized ironically, in a way, he was.

Oh, how she wanted to just move a little closer and press herself against him and hold him and take away whatever burdens were on his mind, and be held by him and finally feel like she really _belonged_!

But already he was turning around, the book once again in his lap. Kei eyed his back. He definitely had a great muscle structure. She was a little jealous. She didn't think that her muscles were as well defined as his… 'Though then again,' she reminded herself, 'if they were, I'd be one pretty macho-looking chic.'

"Okay," he said. "Now you have a picture, of sorts."

Kei moved closer to him, and she reached out a finger. She tried to ignore that she was touching Fukou's back and just study. She wouldn't get very far in life if her essay answers on her science exam consisted of: 'I touched Fukou's back! I saw his chest!' repeated a hundred and fifty times.

She reached a finger, and pointed at each of the muscles as she named them. For Fukou, he felt like he was undergoing torture. Now and again, he could feel her fingers brush his skin, and he found it difficult to keep from shivering at the gentle touches. Her voice was soft as she named everything off, but her breath made his hair stir in its wake, and her soft scent was enticing. He shut his eyes, and it felt like flames licked at his body when she covered his shoulder with her hand, pointing to the final muscle.

"_Latissimus__ dorsi_," she said. She paused afterwards, waiting for him to tell her if she was right or wrong.

To her surprise, he didn't answer her. He was breathing a little oddly. Fuu passed her the textbook, and he almost gleefully turned around. "Your turn," he said, sounding very happy and excited. He looked like a kid in a candy store, grinning and bouncing a little on her bed as his green eyes drank in the sight of her.

"What?" Kei was a little confused now.

His eyes sparkled. Kei knew he was up to some kind of mischief, but she wasn't sure as to what. His grin grew broader, and Kei found herself looking at Miroku's smile. It was the charming, yet lecherous grin he had worn for so long. She almost felt a little exasperated. Even if Fuu wasn't aware of his past life, or who Kei had been to him—and hopefully still was and would be—in their past life time together, she was certain that somewhere in his mind, Miroku was lurking, waiting to be remembered and maybe even…

'What? Maybe even loved? Because I can remember him talking to me when I was Sango and him promising me he would be here to love me? If that was the case, I'm certain that some of Miroku would have shone through… I'm sure that he would have been nicer and more open to me rather than just showing that he his still a stupid pervert by going around and flirting with all the girls!'

Fuu's dark green eyes widened a little. Kei recognized the expression, and she covered her smile with her hand. She had seen Shippo wear that expression countless amount of times, whenever the young fox had begged Kagome for candy, or begged her to let him do something he normally wasn't allowed to do. She looked away, but he leaned in closer, almost nuzzling her chin with his nose. "Please, Kei? I want to study too," he playfully whined.

"I'm not going to take my shirt off for you, Fuu!" she laughed. His eyes seemed to deepen, not darken, _deepen_. As if his eyes were a well swallowing her piece by piece, dragging her into _him_ until she was trapped. A more determined look came over his face as his smile became more reckless, a little bit more like Inuyasha's.

"Please?" he begged further.

"No!"

Growing frustrated, he decided to take a page from Neji's book. His voice, as smooth as it already was, smoothed over, and deepened a little. He moved closer to Kei, letting the tips of his fingers stroke her hair. "Kei-sama," he said, catching her attention. His voice was mesmerizing, and Kei could feel it hold her mind, numbing her thoughts. Her mind and body were separated, and so when his lips brushed her hair, she shivered. Her mind was numb, but her body was responding to even the slightest thing Fuu said or did. His face was beside hers, whispering into her ear. Fuu tried to find words, but he found he had trouble using them. He didn't want to seduce her with words. He wanted her to come to him willingly. "What are you hiding?"

"I'm not hiding anything!" she snapped, getting a little mad.

"Then why don't you show me?" he whispered, feeling her shiver. It made him a little bit prouder, encouraged him to go on. Slowly, he turned his face to hers, his lips brushing against hers a little.

"Fuu-sama," Kei said, blushing and looking away. "You're flirting with me."

She sounded flustered and uncertain. He wondered if it had been meant as a question, rather than a statement.

"I am," he said, shifting his hand and touching her cheek. She turned into his hand, enjoying the moment. Maybe it was a dream, maybe he was teasing her, but at the moment her heart was pounding, and she felt like the most special girl on the face of the planet. If he was teasing her, she'd never forgive him. His hands pressed against her a little more, and his lips parted.

"You're right," she said, cutting him off before he kissed her. It was obvious that was what he was about to do. He was lost in the moment, and Kei didn't want to be kissed, or kiss him back, under such conditions.

He blinked, and pulled away, a little confused, and very surprised at how close they were. He was also surprised at how bright her cheeks were. Her grey eyes were wide. She was somehow managing to appear delighted and frightened at the same time. He wondered how she could do it.

Turning around, she silenced anything he might say. Grabbing the back of her shirt, she lifted it over her head, exposing her back but leaving her front covered. She looked over her shoulder at him, watching as his eyes greedily followed the curve of her hair and down to her back. She could tell exactly when he reached the middle of her back and saw the faded mark there, but what she didn't see was how much he wanted to touch the long hair that pooled on her shoulders, or to touch the skin she had exposed…

Slowly, he reached out a shaking finger, glad that she couldn't see everything. He traced the jagged line where her skin darkened in tone. "How did you get this?" he asked. "It looks like a wound, but it's just skin… like a giant birthmark…"

"I know," she said, sounding very grumpy. She knew what it looked like. She didn't need to hear him say it. Since her memories had reawakened she knew how she had gotten it. Hearing him talk and ask about it brought up the old memories. Her eyes darted away, and in that moment, his hand slid around her front, laying harmlessly against her stomach, her hands wrapped up in her shirt and unable to defend her.

She inhaled sharply when she felt his soft hair brush her shoulder, and his lips gently press against her back. His fingers stroked her spine, and once again she found herself drifting away, enjoying the pleasure of his company and the way he treated her, being gentle and commanding all at the same time, making her fully aware of just what he was doing and _how_ he was making her feel and that _he_ was the one doing it.

Her bottom lip shook as his other hand ran up her back, his lips following. He sniffed quietly, enjoying the scent of her body wash and the faint scent of fruits left behind from her shampoo. She smelled deliciously edible. Kei's heart began to ache. She found it difficult to breathe as he touched her.

"_Deltoids_," he said, kissing her shoulders, running his hand over the muscle and up into her hair, burying his face in the softness for a moment until he moved on. He moved to the base of the neck, his warm hand still playing with her hair, and he sighed contentedly, his lips brushing against her spine. "_Trapezius_. And it goes down… all the way down… to here," he said, stopping at her upper back, kissing her again. His fingertips began tracing her spine, running down along side of it, almost ticklish. "_Erector spinae_," he said, the hand on her stomach moving back to her side. "The obliques."

He leaned forward a little bit more. His bare chest grazed her back and she turned her head enough to see him. He planted a kiss on her cheek, leaning over further and nuzzling her cheek. Kei closed her eyes, enjoying being with him again, nuzzling him back and smiling so broadly it hurt. They were just like a pair of kittens like this, cuddling up to each other and basking in each other's presence, feeling safe, feeling loved and belonged and energetic, wanting to sleep and play at the same time.

"Fuu-sama," she sighed, opening her mouth to say more.

He beat her to speaking as his hand suddenly landed on her derriere, rubbing it with a pleased expression on his face. "_Gluteus maximus_," he sighed, before she slapped his hand away.

Kei shrugged her shirt back on before she turned back around on her bed and smacked him. "You sure know how to ruin a good mood, Fuu-sama."

Rubbing his cheek, his expression still hadn't deteriorated. "It was worth it," he told her, opening his eyes and smiling at her.

Kei felt awkward. She had seen Miroku look exactly like that… the man she loved was in there. How did she get him out? What was she supposed to do? Kei couldn't handle such questions. She didn't have the foggiest as to how to start answering them. All she knew was that the fact that he didn't remember her was killing her. She felt so good when she was with him. She felt wonderful and exotic and all the things that someone was supposed to feel… when they were in love… and he didn't even notice that she loved him. How? How how how?

"Let's just keep on going where we left off…"

* * *

"I'm nervous," Kei admitted, standing just outside the car. Fuu shut the door behind him as he climbed out of the car. He took her hand and held it tightly, his eyes checking her over and approving. She was wearing her gi, and about to go into the national championships once more. There was color in her cheeks, and she looked alive. Her longer hair had been tied up tightly in a bun, and she looked determined, if nervous.

"You'll be fine," Fuu told her. He was dressed almost identically to her. Kei could never get over seeing him dressed like a fighter. There was something about it that made the part of her which remembered the Feudal Era nod approvingly, glad that he was showing the man that Sango had always seen lurking underneath the surface. That had been the man that had grabbed a demon and told him to let go of "my woman", the man who had been scared of fighting her, the man who never gave up, even when poisoned with the stupid poison of Naraku's stupid bugs.

She relaxed at hearing his voice. Fuu or Miroku, he knew just what to say to calm her down. When had they become that close? When had he been able to just calm her down with a single word and by holding her hand? She could feel herself getting wet-eyed just wishing that he would look at her and the next word out of his mouth would be 'Sango'. A sign, any sign that his memories were waking up, that he might feel for her the same way he had all those years ago, would make her break down into sobs and never let him go.

"Thank you," she said very quietly, as they walked into the gym together for the final fight of the year.

* * *

Kei winced in pain when her opponent grabbed her bun and pulled on her hair. Tears sprang to her eyes from the pain on her scalp. She snarled dangerously, grabbing the boy's wrist and flinging him over her shoulder. She didn't let go of his hand, but she kept it, twisting it into a locked position, and drove her fist at the boy's neck with a yell. She stopped when her knuckles grazed his throat.

There was applause is the stands, but Kei couldn't hear it over her own breathing. She knew that it had been stupid going into a fight with long hair, but she didn't want to cut it. She was growing it for Fukou. Miroku had liked girls with long hair—although really, most of the girls had had long hair back then—and so did Fuu. He'd also, she noticed, stopped making comments about how she looked like a boy since she had started wearing her hair up in a ponytail.

Kei remained like that as the boy slumped against the ground, groaning that she had won. The judges were marking their performance and their end position.

* * *

On the sidelines, Fuu was rubbing his neck uncomfortably. It was odd seeing what that position looked like from the sidelines. For some reason, he remembered being where Kei's opponent was now, lying on his back with a very angry girl holding his arm, having just flipped him, his head a little dizzy, and feeling her coarse knuckles graze the soft skin of his throat.

But he couldn't remember when this had happened. It hadn't been this past year, or the year before. He had learned to be weary of Kei and her flips. She knew how to put her smaller size, her muscles, and the way her female body carried weight differently to good use. Maybe she'd done it when they were very little?

Why couldn't he remember exactly? In his memories, she seemed about seventeen, but that would have made it this year, and he knew that it hadn't been this year!

* * *

"I can't believe it!" Kei exclaimed, jumping up and down. She was bursting with excitement, and they were all smiling proudly for her, even Fuu, who was bitter that his financial position wouldn't let him go to Florida with Kei for the summer games. "I managed to get third place!"

She glomped Fuu, making him laugh. Amy let out a sound that sounded a little like a sob when she heard her son laugh. She hadn't heard him laugh in ages, and when she did, it had always been because of Kei. Kei kissed Fukou' cheek, making him blush. The parents saw it, even if Kei didn't, as she was far too excited.

She kept hugging him, and eventually, he hugged her back. Sora and Amy looked teary eyed. Fai simply looked proud, and he ruffled their hair. "How about we all go out for dinner together to celebrate? My treat!"

Concerned about his image, Fuu slipped his glasses back on and fixed his hair, one of his arms still looped around Kei. He didn't know if he and his mother were included in the 'all', so instead he looked at Kei. "Are you sure you want to go out with her? She's all sweaty and kind of smelly," he teased. Kei tried to hit him with her other hand, but he caught it, and they walked uncomfortably, fighting back and forth as they walked ahead of the three parents. In some odd way, it looked a little bit like dancing, and they were all entranced at the way Kei and Fuu were smiling and laughing with each other.

"Young love," Sora sighed, holding her husband's hand.

Amy was quiet, looking a little sad, but tearfully happy. "He misses her when she's gone. They make each other happy. He doesn't feel like this when she's not around. He's more reserved. When he does talk, it's always about her."

"You know," Fai told her, "you and Fuu were included in that offer. Let's face it, as much as we don't want to see them grow up, they're as close as family already. Even if it doesn't turn into a romantic, dating kind of love, they are two of a kind, and inseparable."

Sora looked a little worried. 'Are they really?' she thought. 'I'm not so sure…'

* * *

The television played quietly in the living room of Kei's house. She wasn't watching it anymore. She was mostly asleep, her eyes drifting shut. The people kept on blurring. She yawned, and looked at her human pillow. Fuu lay under her. His eyes seemed almost glazed over as he stared at the television. She could tell that he was ready for bed too.

When she lifted her head off of his chest, he felt her moved and he turned to look at her. His fingers brushed her hair a little bit, and he looked happy, even though he wasn't smiling. Kei smiled at him, sleepily. "Ready for bed?"

He nodded. He was sleeping over again. Kei wondered if maybe she'd again be able to sneak down and take a peek at him sleeping. He looked so soft and young when he slept. He didn't look mad, or handsome, he just looked helpless and vulnerable, and it was at those times when Kei knew she would do anything she could from ever seeing him be hurt again.

They turned off the television and started heading upstairs. Kei was so sleepy that at one point she almost fell backwards down the stairs. Luckily, Fukou was there to take her shoulders. At the landing, he drew her back and held her against him as they walked down the hall to Kei's bedroom. He grabbed his duffle bag and went to the washroom to change and brush his teeth. Kei quickly changed into her pajamas—a pair of blue plaid pants and a man's shirt she'd gotten from the second hand store—and then brushed her teeth in the other washroom.

When she got back from the washroom, she found Fuu stashing his duffle bag under her desk where it wouldn't get tripped over accidentally during the night. Kei stole a few—okay, a lot of glances—at him, eyeing the way his lithe form looked in just his boxers. She barely managed to stifle a laugh when she saw that they were black. She wished that he would wear some green. Dark, emerald green to bring out his eyes. Kei licked her lips and hurried by him to grab a pillow from her bed for him to use. Instead, she held it close to her and looked at him shyly.

"Fuu-sama?" she asked, not daring to look at him.

"Hm?"

"Do you think that you might be able to stay the night up here… with me?" she inquired very shyly. He looked surprised. Frankly, she was surprised that she had asked him as well. "The movie was a little scary… I would just feel better if there was someone else here with me."

He grinned, teasing her relentlessly as he stole the pillow she was clutching. "Scared of a movie, Kei-sama?"

She looked up at him suspiciously. She knew that he didn't really like scary movies as well. "Aren't you?"

Fukou stared at her a moment, and then he nodded, looking pleased to get it off his chest. "Yes. Let's never, ever watch a movie like that before going to bed again. Now, move over."

They both hopped into bed, twisting and turning and fighting over the pillows and blankets before they had gotten comfortable. In the end, Kei was curled up on her side, a pillow clutched in her arms and half under her head, and Fuu was curled up behind her, holding her against his stomach with one hand. His other hand was under his pillow, and Kei stole it, holding it in the middle of the night.

"Good night, Fuu," she sighed, closing her eyes and snuggling against his body a little bit more.

"Good night, Kei," he replied, already half asleep.

* * *

The following morning, Fuu was the first to wake up, though Kei wasn't far behind him. When he woke up, the very fist thing he thought of when he woke up was that he had to still be asleep. He had to be asleep, because he was holding Kei in his arms, hearing her sigh sweetly as she stirred, she was held tightly against his chest, every part of her body conforming wonderfully with his. Her hair smelled wonderful, and when she stirred a little, her body rubbed against his, making his mind rock back and forth in unexpected and strange pleasure.

His hand inched a little bit across her stomach, slipping between the button holes, until his hand lay against her flesh. She was wonderfully soft and yet he could feel the definitions of her muscles. He sighed into her neck, and he could actually tell when she opened her eyes, even though he didn't know how.

"Good morning, Kei."

"Fuu-sama…." she began uncertainly. Fuu waited to be hit for calling her by her first name, or for his hand to be touching her skin, or even for his chin laying on the crook of her neck. Instead, she swallowed, and he knew that she was wearing the cute little expression she'd worn since she was six years old, the one where her nose wrinkled a little and her grey eyes looked more focused because she was trying to figure something out.

"Fuu-sama, what's poking me in the back?"

"Um….."

* * *

After that embarrassing incident had been taken care of, Kei had cooked him waffles for breakfast to make sure that there weren't any hard feelings—pardon the horrible pun. The last thing she wanted was for him to continue being embarrassed. She knew that he couldn't really help it if his body decided: eh, we're sleeping with a girl, let's have an erection.

Fuu, frankly, had felt a little better after he had been able to walk out of her bedroom without severe injury, and still having all of his body parts.

They were washing the dishes together when they heard voices in the hallway, and the front door open and close. Fuu wished he had on more clothes than just his jeans as Fai and a business partner of his walked through the kitchen. Kei's father, however, didn't seem to notice, or even care as he made introductions.

"This is my daughter Kei, and my future son-in-law, Fuu," he introduced. The man nodded his head in greeting, and then Fai ushered him through the rest of the kitchen, into the office at the back of the house. Kei had been completely undisturbed by the whole event. She just continued to wash the dishes.

Putting away the dish he had been drying, Fukou grinned, planning trouble. He stood next to Kei, looking at her with a heated gaze. As of that morning, there had been very little doubt in Kei's mind regarding whether or not Fukou found her attractive, and the look he gave her at that moment made it perfectly clear. He did find her attractive.

"You know," he purred in a deep voice. "If your father really expects me to become his son-in-law, we should get started on making them grandparents as soon as possible." Her face was horrified at his suggestion, and then he reached around, his hand landing on her derriere. Kei's expression then turned mad.

Her hands wet from being in the sink, Kei just lifted her hands and splashed him with a pile of soap. She smiled at him as he laughed loudly, teasingly, making her cheeks blush and her heart warm up to him even more. "Pervert."

Fuu continued laughing at her.

* * *

"We need to talk."

Out of all the words in the Japanese language, those words are probably the ones that Fukou feared the most. He'd heard them a lot in his lifetime, and in every single case, the conversation following them was never a good one. He forced himself to smile and turned around. He was on the shrine, a broom in his hands as he once again worked at the shrine during summer vacation.

He found Kei standing there, and despite her serious tone of voice, she was soft looking. She didn't look like she was mad, or sad, or anything, she just looked… like Kei. Kei who looked more like a girl than he could remember in a long time. Her long hair was unbound, falling around her face and softening the muscular lines of her body. There was a dab of lip gloss on her lips. She wore a simple pair of jeans, and a plain white t-shirt.

And she looked incredibly hot while doing so. Fuu had never met a girl other than Kei who could wear normal, everyday clothes, and somehow still manage to look like a model. It had to have something to do with how she carried herself. The hint of shyness made her seem unobtainable, but one could tell by her clothes that she was a practical girl, one that should be right up everybody's alley. Even when she wasn't smiling she always managed to spread warmth and happiness in his life. She was desirable… and he wondered why he was so scared to admit that.

He had to force himself to admit since a week ago, when he had slept over at her house, and for the first time, in the same bed. Even back then, when she had been wearing draw string pants and a hand-me-down shirt, she had looked attractive. Not just attractive… beautiful, exotic, even—dare he say it—sexy. He had seen her and wished that she dropped the pants and that she had been wearing one of his shirts.

"I'm going to not see you again," she said, a smile appearing and fading just as suddenly. Her voice filled with sadness. "For all summer. Again. Last summer, toward the end of it, I couldn't help it and I cracked. I wanted you there with me. I know that you can't go… I understand that. You have all this responsibility right now that I can't really understand, no matter how hard I try."

Fuu just kept quiet, letting her talk and listening. Eventually, she would get to the point.

Her throat felt dry. Her hands were clammy. She couldn't believe that she was doing this. But she took a deep breath, and reminded herself that she had done it all before. She took a step closer to him. She had done it all with him in her last life. She took a second step. This was no different than that. She took a third step, and she was close enough to grab him. Instead, she looked up, her long lashes visible, her grey eyes so clear that he couldn't see where they ended.

"I wanted to give you your birthday gift now, before I lose my cool."

With that, she did indeed reach out and grab him. She grabbed the folds of his robe and pulled the shocked teenager down to her level and she kissed him soundly. A lot. For a long period of time. His eyes remained open, his body caught off balanced and he was in complete and total shock, though he somehow managed to kiss her back. His eyes slowly closed, and for the second time in his life, Fuu found himself lost in a kiss. Even his first kiss hadn't been this good!

His arms drew around her as he held her, his tongue slipping between her parted lips. Kei sighed, letting out a fluttering moan and kissing him back with more vigor. She held him tighter, and it made his blood pound faster. She felt like something was wrong when Fuu lifted his head and looked around, dropping the broom he held. He glanced around the shrine.

"Come on," he said in a rush of breath, drawing her closer to the tree. Kei felt a wave of that foreign power emanating from the tree fall over her again, reminding her of the Sengoku Jidai. When he pinned her up against the back of the tree, out of view from the rest of the shrine, she returned back to the present in time to kiss him back as his lips descended on hers. He played with her hand, drawing it up over her head and pinning it there. Her other hand was playing with his hair as his began climbing her stomach. Kei knew exactly where he was going.

And she didn't care. Pinned against the Goshinboku, it felt like her memories were the strongest, and in that place, she wasn't with Fuu. She was with Miroku. Miroku was the one letting out a sigh of pleasure as he touched her, feeling and massaging the curves of her body. It was Miroku whose lashes touched her cheeks as he kissed her. It was Miroku's dark hair that was soft under her skin, not Fuu's.

Was it wrong that she felt that way? Was it right? Deep down, it was the same soul that she loved, and she had loved that soul as Miroku first. Was it right that she still, occasionally, saw him as such, as the man she had first loved?

Sometimes, the weight and the reality of the world scared her…

Fuu was lost in a dream, a wonderful, amazing dream. But when a horn of a waiting car blared, and they vaguely heard Kei's dad tell her they were going to be late to the airport, he was slammed back into reality. He looked down at the girl he had pinned up against a tree. She looked flushed, and a little nervous. It surprised him. She had been showing all the signs of enjoying it… hadn't she…? Why didn't she look like she had been enjoying it?

He looked like his normal, serious, self. Kei was a little disappointed. She had been half expecting to find Miroku's lecherous grin on his face, overdoing an acting job as he hung his head and covered his face, complaining about how the cruel world had ruined the kiss of his lifetime.

He stepped away from her further, giving her room to flee. She didn't want to go. "You should get going. Your parents are obviously waiting for you in the car. I don't want you to miss your flight."

"If I did, I wouldn't be sorry about staying here," she admitted. "With you." She didn't know what else to say. 'Goodbye' seemed so insubstantial after a kiss like that! She hung her head, feeling a rift suddenly appear between them again. For a moment, they had been so close, and now there as a rift between them. She'd already closed it a little, admitting that he was more important to her than going around the world, than fighting. She fought for him. She wanted to make him proud. She liked fighting against him, testing each other and encouraging each other, learning to think quickly and change tactics… what was the point of all of that if he wasn't there to see it? For ever microsecond she stood there, the more she didn't want to leave.

Fukou didn't say anything. In fact, he looked away from her. It hurt her, and he knew it. If there was one thing he knew how to do better than anything else, it was hurt people to keep them away from him. He had been doing it since he was six years old. Now he had perfected it into doing it with a look.

She sniffled a little, before she got herself under control. Ow. Ow, that look hurt. She nodded, as if she understood what he was silently saying, and she walked away.

That was how she left him for the third time. Reminiscent of the first, there was no goodbye kiss, there was no good luck, just Kei, telling herself she'd be back soon as the car slowly pulled out from in front of the shrine and she huddled in the back seat.

But suddenly, she never wanted to be back again.

* * *

To be continued...


	16. Thank You for loving Me

AN: Whee! Thank you everybody for helping me hurdle past the three hundred point for reviews! In all honesty, I was very concerned at the reception this fic would receive, but apparently people like it. It makes me glad! I like making people happy.

Iggy: Actually, Iggy, Kei _was_ Sango, but she _is_ not Sango. She's evolved, but she still has all of Sango's memories intact… because in those memories, there may be the way to save Miroku's soul, so she does actually have all of her memories intact, and she _knew_ Miroku. But you got the right idea. Kei is confused because she _is_ making those judgments, and she knows that she shouldn't be. It's unjustified, but she can't help it but compare them… so she must learn to stop, and eventually, she does.

Fireblade: Kei will return home soon, don't worry. And the fluff is back with a vengeance!

AngelsWarmth: Really, the question of whether or not two reincarnated souls are still meant for each other is supposed to be what this whole story is about. So, sadly, you;ll just have to wait to see what happens.

Houhouza: It's comments like yours which make me feel silly when I spend the first page or two of a chapter discussing characters and being analytical myself (as Iggy tells me I'm analytical).

Fred: (_looks at the last chapter_) Okay… if I find out you've read DW, I'm finding where you live and I'm having a chat with your mother. (I jest, I jest.. mostly). Eh. You know what? I was like that too. Even now, sometimes I read kissing scenes and I'm like… ew. And I'm 21 now.

Pyrinsomniac: Happy belated birthday!

Starzki: Good. Because I only have a few more surprises and I don't want them to be ruined. And I need to pee, but I think my roommate is showering… dang it….

Lily Thorne: I did? Wow! (_dances__ and then remembers she has to pee_) And I'll make up for it.

DeadTired: I know. I loathe those kinds of fics as well. It makes me mourn for the deterioration of our society and language. And I would like to be an author someday… sadly, my beta reader for my cover letters hasn't emailed me back any recommendations yet… so… no short stories will be published from me anytime soon.

Fantastical Queen: Thanks for the heads up. I will stop copying the lyrics in… though I say mine were okay, because I did credit them to the proper owners… (_wonders__ if she should have put disclaimers in…_)

Lunar Paradise: I walk into doors. It can get worse.

Black Mistress: Simple. She doesn't want to come back because she's afraid of facing Fuu again. If she doesn't return from Florida, then she won't have to face him anymore.

Soli-chan: Funny story about the "son-in-law" comment. It's not so funny when you're in grade nine and your mom says it. Even less funny when all you feel is livid rage towards the guy helping you clean dishes. Even _less_ funny when, six long years later, she turns out to be right!

Chadrific: Fuu's very scared. (_nods_) I would be too…

Siren: If you ask me, he becomes a pediatrician. Or maybe a family doctor. I think he'd be awesome at both. And your boyfriend, I hear, is back in town now. I have to wait two more weeks before I see mine again.

Ninalee-chan: It didn't taste bad.. but then… my boyfriend cooked it, and he's awesome in the kitchen. He can turn my weak pantry into a full course meal. (Hard to believe I just saw him last week… feels like a lifetime!) And… as the last chapter covered a few weeks to a month or two, why shouldn't they all happen in the last chapter? (_grins_) And I actually disagree with you regarding the smile, but that's because of my own current relations with a certain man with his own perverted side (I keep telling people I'm dating a guy with Miroku's personality and Ichigo's looks and no agrees with me until they see us together…). Seeing it reminds me that he's happy, and so I figured, why wouldn't Kei feel that same way? And as will plainly be able to see in future chapters, I am edging away from Keo smacking Fuu, as I usually do with Sango and Miroku as well. Though he deserves it many times in the Sengoku Jidai, it's a little bit too… uncomfortable to deal with sometimes. If you know what I mean.

Arabella: Actually, I just let my music file go on my computer, and eventually a song pops out. It's entirely random. But, the Beatles do rock.

Heysuesista: That is freaky! And hopefully you'll like the use of songs even though I'm no longer using the lyrics… (as apparently condones the use of them).

Oboe: Agreed. Bi-polarness is okay when it's targeted towards books and characters. And your anime has anime? I mean... your library has anime? You lucky duck!

Enough rambling from me… enjoy!

Oh… and Shin's first comment in this chapter belong to Brent and Wicks respectivelty.

Theme song for chapter 16: Thank You For Loving Me… by Bon Jovi.

(I really wish I could upload the lyrics because they're so pretty…)

* * *

Chapter Sixteen: Thank You For Loving Me

That summer was hell. Fuu spent most of it pacing back and forth. Somehow, while working at the shrine, he was able to accomplish much thinking, and he paced enough to wear down his own track. He even prayed to the tree, hoping that something—anything—would calm down the voice in the back of his mind and the desperation he had been feeling since Kei had left for the championships.

His dilemma was complicated.

On the one hand, all the girls he had known, all the girls he had dated, were nothing but stupid airheads. They used him as much as he used them. He got sex—or variations of it—from them, and in return, they got to claim that they were dating Fuu, and all the things that came with it: science protégé, pervert, and martial artist. Thus far, his father had been right. Girls were manipulative bitches who took a man for all he was worth and then left him in the ditch at the first sign of trouble.

That was why he had always tried to look at Kei like she wasn't a girl. He tried not to even to think of her as another sister, because the idea of her acting like how those girls acted around him, showing off their bodies and sighing and moaning, was not something he _ever_ wanted to think about. When he was younger, even up to last year, he'd always tried to think of her as a little brother. It wasn't too hard to do.

She didn't have _that_ much of a figure, after all.

The problem was that he knew she wasn't like that. He knew that she wasn't just after him because she was attracted to him, or that she wanted to elevate her status in high school society. They had a lot in common—they had _stupidly_ a lot in common. They were a perfect match, so perfect it was ridiculous, really, and made his aversion even dumber. So why couldn't he bring himself to just pop her off on email with just a few simply words?

_Kei- let's go out when you come back. Fuu._

He wanted to. He had about half a dozen of them in his draft box, all variations of the same things. Some were longer than others. Some were even shorter. He'd been thinking about sending them out for the past year, but he could never make himself hit the 'send' button. He was scared.

He was scared of her rejecting him, of the one girl he found different laughing in his face, or worse, telling him that she only cared for him like an older brother. He was scared of making her mad and getting beaten within an inch of his life—an exaggeration, but he _was_ afraid of her reacting physically to his action. He was also afraid of Neji and what his friend might say. Both of them were open regarding Kei, in their own way, but asking her out when Neji didn't know it would be rather mean, since Fuu knew that Neji had had a crush on Kei since they were in grade one.

And then there was the problem of how she made him feel. She made him feel comfortable, and happy, and at the same time, she made him want to bash his head into the wall as he felt his mind torn apart, and he realized suddenly, how incomplete he felt when he was alone. He did feel incomplete without Kei around. And it was painful; terribly so.

He sat on the roof of his porch, eighteen years old, and still lounging there like he had when he was seven. The night sky shimmered above him. His body ached from a hard day at work. He didn't just work at the shrine, he worked wherever he could get a job: the shrine, the local mart, the local grocery store on the night shift, mowing lawns, driving around some of his neighbors too old to drive… he did whatever he had to do in get by in life. And when he saw Kei, even if he didn't smile, it made everything better. He felt lighter, more carefree than he ever had before. He wanted to tease her and hug her and just… be there for her. He just wanted to _be there_.

His hands behind his head, he lifted one of them to brush his long bangs from his face. His bangs flopped over his forehead. He could still remember being in grade two and looking up at the sky, wondering where Kei was and trying hard not to think about her. When he did, it was like his heart clenched. It was like that now. He thought of Kei, and his heart ached to be with her, hurt with worry for her… he wondered what she was doing, how she was doing…

He wondered why she liked him. Other girls liked him because they thought he was attractive. Other girls did it because they had heard stories and wanted to experience those stories first hand. Others did it because they had seen him fight and saw him as a knight in shining armor. What did Kei see when she looked at him? Did she see the little hellion he pretended to be? Did she see the teenager who only smiled for her? Did she see the boy who made her laugh? The genius who studied with her? The pervert who made her blush when he cracked sexual jokes? The scientist hunched over dissections, making cuts so precise a surgeon could be jealous? What he wouldn't give to look through her eyes!

The whole decision of if he wanted to risk ruining a beautiful friendship rested on two factors. One, Kei had kissed him with such passion! Surely she had to feel something if she had been able to kiss him like that. She cared about him, he knew she did, all because of the intensity of that kiss. Claiming it was a birthday gift had all just been a tactic to do it, reminding him of what had happened on her birthday. Their first kiss. Even that had been astounding…

The second problem was that he did have a crush on Kei. He'd had a crush on her since the first day of high school, when she had run up and glomped him, jumping on his back and crying out his name before she started teasing him about his earring. He pulled on the gold loop as he sprawled out on the roof, recalling her surprise at seeing it. That's how long he'd liked her for. That was when he saw the type of girl he'd always wanted. He wanted someone cheerful, and affectionate, and who would keep him in line while still allowing him to be himself.

He wanted Kei.

But if he screwed up, he could lose everything… including the one person he wanted more than anything, or anybody else, in the entire world.

* * *

Kei walked into her hotel room, disgusted with herself. She felt like she was covered in layers of sweat. She probably was. She'd only had three fights that day, but even just sitting on the sidelines was stifling. Who knew that lights could generate so much heat?

Pulling off her _gi_, she had just stripped down to her pants and her tank top when the phone rang. She jumped at the sound. Nobody ever called her. Sighing, she finished pulling her arm out of the sleeve and tossed the shirt in the dirty laundry pile she was creating.

'I hope it's the kitchen telling me I'm owed a piece of chocolate cake,' she prayed, picking up the receiver. "Hello?"

"Kei?" The voice was faint, but it was unmistakable.

"Fuu-sama! Wha- what are you doing calling me like this?"

"Well, you see, electrical signals are currently…"  
"Not like that! I didn't mean that! I mean," she stammered, trailing off and feeling herself blush. She sat down on the plush hotel bed, looking down at her feet. She hadn't felt this happy since they had sat in bed and he had flirted with her. "I mean, you're spending too much money with an international call like this. You shouldn't have done it."

"I wanted to see how you were doing."

She smiled a little at that. "I'm doing just fine. A little lonely, but Mom and I are having fun sight seeing. Shouldn't you be in bed? It's late over there."

Kei heard him yawn over the phone. "Don't worry about it. I set my alarm clock and got up extra early instead of staying up late. I'm a big boy, Kei. I can take care of myself."

"That's two hits I owe you, Fuu-sama," she teased.

"I won't hold you up long. You're obviously delusional and looking for a fight. I just wanted to ask you if you wanted to celebrate coming back home. I was thinking that we could celebrate it the night after you came back, that way you had a chance to see your dad and have a family dinner and everything, and…"

"Oh, Fuu-sama," she said, grinning. "Don't be so silly! You and your mother are family to us! We can all go out together!"

'Kei,' Fuu thought. 'You're a genius, but sometimes you can be so blind!' He coughed nervously. "Actually, I was thinking just us. Just you and me, out for dinner, alone."

Her jaw had become wider and wider with each word he had said. Now it was so wide it hurt. He was asking her out? He was asking her out! He was asking her out! Kei was so happy she thought her heart would burst. She laughed into the phone. She'd always thought that she would be nervous if or when he asked her out. Instead, she just felt immensely happy, and strangely normal. It was a big deal, she knew it was, but she wasn't really scared. She was going to go out with her best friend. It was wonderful… it was perfect!

"How you can ask me that while it sounds like you have a straight face, I don't know. Stop smiling like an idiot, Fuu-sama." He laughed over the phone, because he somehow had managed to ask her out with a straight face, and he was smiling like an idiot when she admitted that she knew him well enough to know he had done it! She arched an eyebrow. "Are you asking me out on a date, Fuu-sama?"

He nodded before he remembered that she couldn't see it.

"I'd be more than happy to go out with you, Fuu-sama!"

Fukou held the receiver away from his ear and stared at in surprise. How did she manage to do that? She always seemed to know exactly what he was doing or thinking or how he was acting, and it was a little creepy. He didn't know if he wanted to be known so well, though it was a little pleasing to know that she was able to read his mind.

"But only on one condition," she finished.

Deflating, he held the phone back against his ear and fell back on the bed. Now he was worried. "Condition?"

"Yup. No matter what happens between us, promise me that you'll always be my friend? I know that if something does happen between us, that it will take time to fix, but you're my best friend, Fuu-sama. You've pretty much always been there for me, and vice versa. I can't imagine a life—any life—without you, not having you as my friend. Promise me, please, that we'll always be friends."

There she was doing her mind reading thing again. But this time he smiled gratefully. She valued their friendship too. It made him feel more relaxed than he had been in a while. "I promise, Konseki-san."

"Good!" Kei's smile hurt, it was so powerful. "I expect you to pinky-swear on it when I get back there!"

Fukou hung up laughing.

Kei hung up and sat there in shock. Then she jumped up screamed so loud that people three rooms down heard her and came in to check on her.

* * *

A few days later, Kei was back in Tokyo. She woke up bright and early the morning of the so-called "date" she had with Fukou, and she could hardly contain herself. She found an email telling him that he would pick her up at her house at seven o clock for a late dinner, teasing her that she shouldn't stuff herself full during the day. Kei vowed to put something squishy in his bed for insinuating she ate a lot.

After ransacking her closet, she found that she couldn't find anything to wear. Worse, she didn't even know what to wear! She would wear pants, but then she was afraid of looking too masculine, and what if jeans were too casual? A skirt would be better because it wasn't too dressy or too casual, but the girls in the locker room had always told agreed that wearing a dress meant that you were after "something" because of "easy accessibility". Kei didn't wear those short skirts that looked more like belts… she liked ones that flowed… but did that send across the same message?

There was only one person she could call, one person she could ask for help. She dialed the number quickly.

"You've reached Shin's mortuary. You stab 'em, we slab 'em. How may I service your member today?"

Kei's eyes narrowed, despite the smile she hid. "Shin, you've been hanging out with Jou far too much."

Shin laughed, agreeing with her. "I forgot you came back in town this week! How's the jet leg treating you?"

"Okay. I'm bouncing off the walls actually. I have… I have this… _thing_ to go to, and there's going to be this guy… _guys_ there, in general, I mean, and…."

"Kei, do you have a date?"

She blushed deeply, cursing the fact that her friends knew her so well. "Um…" Kei leaned the phone between her shoulder her ear, allowing her to free her hands so she could pace and wring them nervously. "Maybe I do, Shin…"

"In that case, I'll be over in ten minutes. We'll go through your wardrobe, find out what you need and what you already have and how we can mix and match clothing, and if we can't find anything, then it's time for an emergency shopping trip. I assume that this so-called 'maybe' date of yours requires a top secret stamp for protection?" Kei nodded, and Shin continued. "Kei, it's a phone. I can't see you when you nod. Okay, ten minutes and I'll be over. And really, Kei, you didn't need to phone. Whatever you decide to wear will look good on you. You always do look presentable."

Kei sighed into the phone, but Shin had hung up before she could respond to him. She put the phone away and jumped into the shower for one of the fastest shower of her life.

* * *

Ten minutes later, exactly when he said he would arrive, Shin was rummaging through Kei's closet while she was in the washroom, drying her long hair and covered up in the fluffiest housecoat she could find. Brushing her long hair, she could hear Shin cluck over her clothes and make some sounds of approval over others.

"So what type of look are you going for?" Shin asked when she emerged from the washroom. She was momentarily horrified to see that her closet, which she'd had arranged from t-shirt to sweaters in a changing color scheme, and been complete desecrated.

"Um…" She felt her cheeks turn a bed red as she sat on the bed, watching Shin work as he held up this shirt or that, and looking at the three skirts she owned. Yes, only three. Shin secretly felt it was a crime that a girl that had legs as nice as hers would only have three skirts, but at the same time he knew that three, for Kei, was a lot. "I want to look like a girl."

He snorted, tossing a possible blouse to wear on the bed. "That's a little hard to miss. You look like a girl, Kei. What do you think is going to happen? Your date is going to hold you close and then realize that you have breasts and he's going to dump you because he thought you were a guy just because you enjoy wearing a simple pair of jeans and baggy shirts?" He looked over at her to find that she looked suddenly very scared. Apparently his exaggerated suggestion wasn't quite so exaggerated to Kei.

"Kei," Shin said gently, sitting beside her on the bed and wrapping an arm around her, "why would you think that at all?"

She very quietly answered, her dark bangs shielding her face from his prying eyes. "Because people always tease me about being too masculine, about not being feminine enough, and about looking too much like a guy. But I don't like the clothes that are out there for girls. I don't like the skin tight clothes that let everything hang out, or the plunging necklines meant for girls that are stacked. All those short skirts make feel like a whore… so I wear my pants, and my nice, breathable and loose shirts, and I get more comments that I don't look like a girl."

Shin wasn't an idiot. "It was Fuu who said that, wasn't it?" After a moment, Kei nodded. He sighed, and hugged her tighter for a second. "Eh, ignore him. He's a bastard. And he loves teasing people, especially you, Kei."

"Why? Sometimes I just wish he would stop it and leave me alone. I mean, normally I don't mind it, but then he hits the right subject to get me really hurt or pissed off, and I punch him or slap him, and then he's hurt and I feel guilty, which only makes things worse!"

"Tell you what," Shin suggested with a smile, "we'll go on a shopping trip, and we'll find an outfit for you, just for tonight, that's nice and feminine and that won't make you feel like a whore. I know just what to get you! One of those skirts that slant to the side, and if we get a black one, it will go beautifully with this black blouse…. And then you should get something blue, to try and bring out your eyes a little, but black would look so good on you too! I mean, you have this gorgeous complexion, like Fuu-sama… oh, I don't suppose that we could get you to wear pink, could we? I know normally you seem to like sticking to warmer, darker colors, but pink would look so nice! Especially if the person teases you like Fuu-sama does, or pays you a nice compliment! You have no idea how red you turn!"

Shin thought a moment longer, and then pounced Kei on the bed. "OH! This is so _great_! Shopping trip! I needed an excuse to go to the mall! And planning an outfit for you is so much fun!"

Kei managed to laugh a little, catching Shin's excitement, though she felt a little overwhelmed. She hadn't heard Shin say much in one sitting since the last time she had heard him give a speech in class, or the last time someone had asked him something about art. "So I _can_ wear a skirt without giving a boy the wrong impression?"

"Well, you're pretty safe," Shin laughed. "I've heard that idea too. It helps that I'm one of the few boys in art class. Basically, there are a few different types of boys: one will notice the type of clothes you're wearing and be shocked on how they look on you, and be spellbound for the rest of the night. That's the response we want you to get. The second group is the kind of macho-guy who won't even bother to look at your clothes, he'll just start talking about baseball or something like that. The third type is the horny sex-driven type. It doesn't matter what you wear around them. You could dress like a nun from way back when and they'd still claim the penguin look was the 'come get me big boy' look."

Kei laughed a little harder, and it wasn't long until the therapeutic shopping trip had begun.

* * *

In the end, she was happy—and astounded—with the outfit that Shin had managed to help her put together. It was perfect. Five minutes early, just as Fukou normally was a he hated being late, the doorbell rang. Kei was already prepared. She felt weird, but when she walked downstairs and found Fuu already in the living room, getting "the talk" from her dad, the reaction she got was worth it.

His eyes started at her ankles. She wore enclosed sandals, as it was warm, but getting chillier at night. An anklet circled her ankle, and from there her legs seemed to race up. Shin had indeed found a black skirt for her to wear, a wavy one that slanted, so that one side started at her calf and the other had her knee, making her legs look longer and giving her a bit of modesty as well as appeal. She wore a red blouse which shimmered a little when she walked, and made the amber earrings she was wearing stand out a little bit more. Her hair was unbound, and Fukou couldn't wait to touch it. A black sweater was draped over her arm as she stood there, her lips accentuated by a bit of lip gloss… and the happiness every ounce of her seemed to radiate.

Fai disappeared into the kitchen, leaving Fuu and his daughter alone to greet each other. Fuu swallowed nervously, coming to stand at the base of the stairs, his eyes never leaving hers. "You look amazing," he said, making Kei mentally cheer and applaud Shin.

"I wanted to look nice for you," she said, coming to stand next to him. Kei looked up at him, feeling herself already turn a little bright-cheeked from his presence alone. She had never thought that she could make Fuu look so astounded!

"You always look nice for me, Kei," he said, smiling down at her. He sighed with pleasure.

"Fuu-sama," Kei said sweetly, tilting her head to the side and having her smile become a little crooked. "If you just want to grope me during this date, I believe that I can find something else constructive to do with my time."

He pulled his hand away, surprised that he hadn't gotten slapped, and surprised that he had groped her. It had just felt like the right thing to do. He hadn't actually expected to have his hand reach out and do it on its own. 'Stupid hand!' he hissed at it. 'Stupid, stupid, corrupt and haunted hand!' He smiled charmingly. "I apologize, Konseki-san. Shall we?" he asked, offering her his arm.

Kei merely smiled.

* * *

To be continued next week!


	17. Asterisk

Comrade in Arms

AN: Next week I'm going home for a visit, therefore there won't be any updates next week. (Sorry. And sorry that this one was late! I didn't really feel like updating last night!) So I'm going to try to post on Saturday, though we'll see how it goes because I also need to pack. Want to make sure I have enough clean socks and undies, after all! Part of why I'm going home that week is because of Anime North being in two weeks (twelve days!). If anyone is going to Anime North… let me know. Give me a ring. I'd love to get to meet some of the people behind the reviews.  
To all those questioning Shin's sexual orientation: Shin is what Shin is. I don't know if that's heterosexual, homosexual, or bisexual. But I don't know what Jou or Neji are either. Maybe all of Neji's skirt-chasing is just… overcompensation?

Kasai to Kasumi: Yup, you got the nail on the head with that one.

Fred the Mutant Pickle: I'm 21. I got out of my bubble when I was your age and hit university. And yes, that is an awesome way to answer the phone. My friends are really quite creative.

Siren: I think most people see him as a doctor because he has such great people skills! And also because… who wouldn't want a doctor? I mean: they're smart if they got through medical school, they do generally have great people skills… (Actually, I never understood the doctor thing. Doctors scare me.) And, FYI, yes, my boyfriend did come up. I loved seeing him. And the best part is… I get to see him again in 6 days because I'm going home for the week.

Bonzo the Fifth: O.o Yup. I can totally accept that!

Fireblade: I will spoil it for you: yes to your second question.

Pyrinsomniac: Yay! Another person who disagrees with today's clothing style! And you pegged Neji's role perfectly.

Starzki: I did, in fact, _not_ pee myself waiting for the washroom. I don't think I'd risk copying the deal you had with your roommate, though, as we have one washroom. I love my roommate, but peeing in the same room as her? Nope. And you'll find out how she did in Florida in this chapter.

Fantastical Queen: So am I. That's why I waited so long for them. If I really could, I would have loved to have drawn this story out more and have them break up (yes, I would have them break up) and then get back together years later when they are more mature. But this story is not only long enough already, there are enough awesome break-up/get-together fics out there. Like 'Rekindling' by Windesprite. Or Aamalie's 'A Little Unwell'. Both are awesome fics.

DeadTired: Wow. You know, that's an awesome idea. I'll have to keep it in mind so that I can see if I can fit it in. I would love to fit in this chapter, as it would be a perfect way to explain Fuu's mood swings, but I am satisfied with this chapter (except for the ending, which only really works visually) so I don't want to fiddle with it. For the most part though, Fuu knows he was reincarnated, but he doesn't want to remember anything. He's closed-minded to it all because he knows the past is too painful and that it doesn't end well. He needs a catalyst. And it's not Kei.

Ninalee-chan: I don't like to brag about it. But… let's just say that he's inspired a lot in the story, from the science classroom (where we dissected cow hearts together) to the meal that Fuu cooks in this chapter (_mouth waters_). Best meal I ever ate!

Ears: It's because fluff is like food. It is, in fact, possible to survive for short periods of time on fluff. That's how I live.

Oh jeeze… this review is a page. I'm shutting up now! Thank you to everyone who reviewed! You make me feel really guilty for not having updated yesterday like I said I would! I hope you like their first date!

Theme Song: Asterisk, from Bleach (don't know who the band is!)

"The thoughts and wishes of the past will cross the ages, and arrive just as vividly."

* * *

Chapter Seventeen: Asterisk 

"Where are we going?" Kei asked as they drove through the streets of Japan. Her gaze went from the houses outside to Fuu. She felt a little jittery about being out on a date with Fuu, but he seemed very calm in comparison. He was leaning back in his chair, one hand on the gear shift and another on the steering wheel, his lazy gaze looking very pleased as they coasted along. Fuu was always a very conscious driver. "Fuu-sama?"

He reached his hand over and patted hers. "Have a little bit of patience, Kei-sama. We'll get their eventually. I know I said that I would take you out for dinner, but I took a look at the money situation, and I'm afraid that it's not going to happen. So, instead, I figured that since my Mom is out, we'd have the house to ourselves and we could watch a movie and have a home cooked meal." He squeezed her hand and flashed her a grin that made her stomach turn over in flip-flops… a feeling which was as pleasant and exciting as it was a little overwhelming.

She felt very relaxed around Fuu, which was nice. It wasn't just because she looked at him and she saw all of the little things that had made her love him five hundred years ago, it was the fact that they had a new history together. She looked at him, and how could she feel nervous when she found herself looking at the boy who had given Kei her first real kiss, or who had splashed in puddles with her, who had teased her mercilessly and whom she used to fight with using umbrellas as swords?

It felt _right_ being with him.

"You know that means that I'm going to need your help in the kitchen, right?" he asked, suddenly looking mischievous.

Kei groaned, and the cool voice that was five hundred years old rolled her mental eyes and sighed. 'On the other hand, how can I not be nervous when I know that I'm going out with someone who happens to be a notorious lecher in this life and the last?'

In less than an hour and a half, they had pulled up in front of Fuu's house, Kei had been firmly escorted to the kitchen where she had immediately been appointed to the task of making a salad while Fuu finished the fish he had already started. Kei began pulling plates down, and his large hands encircled hers, putting the plates back away. Kei felt the color rise to her cheeks when she found herself trapped between Fuu and the cupboards. Strands of her dark hair clung to the nape of her neck, and she could feel them moving. Her skin felt suddenly hyper-sensitive. She could feel the warm fabric of his shirt brush her neck as he drew back his arm, his chest just grazing the taught muscles of her back…

"I already set the table," he said.

She turned around, looking at the empty kitchen table, but her words were interrupted when his knuckles grazed her cheek. They rested there a moment, so briefly that Kei thought she had imagined the contact, though she could still feel his knuckles grazing her skin.

His face softened. His breath crossed her cheeks, ruffling her hair. She swallowed, her fingers latching on to the counter behind her for support. Kei knew what that look meant. She had never seen it focused on her in this life, but she had seen it: on television, in movies, on Fuu's face as he leaned in to kiss other girls, on Miroku's face when he had leaned in to kiss…. His lashes lidded his eyes, hiding their depths from her prying eyes as she tried to study him, wondering what he was thinking.

Then, as quickly as it had come, before he had even come close to kissing her, he was pulling away. He grinned at her, that wonderful, charming and flirtatious smile Kei could recognize just from the way it changed the atmosphere around Fuu. "You look cute when you smile. Has anyone ever told you that?"

_You look adorable when you smile like that, Sango. I love teasing you to watch you become all flustered. You turn the prettiest shade of pink when you blush. I figure it won't be too long until I can get you to laugh._

She became a little flustered when she found herself wanting to lie and tell the truth at the same time. She settled for the half-truth. "Not in so many words, Fuu-sama."

He turned back to the fish he was cooking, and she examined him closely, wondering what was going on in that mind. She had never been able to figure out that mind, not after decades of marriage, or after almost two decades of knowing Fukou. It was like he wanted to kiss her, again, but at the same time, he was trying to keep his distance from her. Why? It made her a little suspicious… and Kei didn't want to be suspicious! But it was hard to act normal when Fuu seemed to be suffering from mood swings.

"This fish is done," he said, scooping up the breaded fillets to the plates. Kei sniffed the air. The smell of the food he'd cooked was making her drool. "We have breaded pickerel, salad with caramelized mango and mango-flavored salad dressing, and garlic mashed potatoes."

"Wow, Fuu-sama!" she giggled. "If I had known that you could cook like this, I would have asked you to start making us lunch, that way you wouldn't have to eat my food." Deep down, she felt a little bad. She'd been helping her mother in the kitchen since she could remember, and yet without her mother's help, she was never able to make a decent meal, but Fukou cooked like a master chef. "How did you get so good?"

He shrugged, handing her a plate and gesturing that they take their plates into the dining room. "I learned how to cook when I was really little. I had to, because my parents were often out working in the summer time." Kei swore she saw a bit of a blush on his face. "Anyway, don't tell anyone about it. I don't want it to… you know."

"Ruin your image?" she hinted with a smile. "Cross my heart and hoped to die." Was it just her, or had he suddenly seemed to get stiffer when she had said 'to die'?

Fukou opened the door to the dining room, and Kei sighed. He did have the table set already, with wine glasses out, lemonade on the table instead of wine, a container of daisies brightening up the room, and a candle flickering. When did he have time to sneak into the dining room and light a candle?

"Oh, Fuu," she sighed, taking her seat when he pulled out her chair for her. Her head bowed a little so he couldn't see her face, she tried to make herself stop smiling so intensely. Her smile was so big and proud that her face was hurting. Out of everything she had been expecting, she had never been expecting this. She felt his fingers gently tilt up her face she he could see her. He was surprised to see her pale eyes filled with respect. "This looks beautiful, Fuu-sama."

He was about to say thank you when she suddenly leaned forward a little bit and kissed his cheek in silent thanks. Fuu's mind went blank. She giggled softly when she found his cheeks were indeed a little red, and they silently began to eat their meals.

Kei thought she was going to die after the first bite. "Oh my god, Fuu! This is great!"

"Was there ever any doubt?"

"Well, in all honesty, I once made stir fry with tofu and it looked perfectly fine, it smelled perfectly fine… but the problem was that I hadn't been able to get the tofu cooked properly, or marinated properly, and so in the end, it was really mushy and didn't taste like anything. Generally, the worse my food looks, the better it tastes. It's the stuff that looks right that you have to worry about. I thought the same might be true of everybody's cooking." She looked up from his plate to see him staring at her like she was some kind of an alien. "What?"

"Nothing," he said, shaking his head. He decided to move on to a happier topic. "Tell me about what the contest was like. How did you do?"

She put her fork down slowly, her grey eyes turning flat and lifeless as she retrieved her sweater. She pulled out a ribbon. Fuu could already feel himself feeling sorry for her. He had wanted Kei to do so well this year; she'd tried so hard and had been so sure that this year, she was going to do better. And what had he done to encourage her? He hadn't said anything of encouragement. He'd basically just turned his back on her…

'Nice job, Fukou,' he said to himself cruelly. 'You really know how to support your friends and be compassionate, don't you?' He reached out and took the ribbon from Kei, and his frown suddenly reversed itself. He looked up with a grin that made Kei smile in return, and he saw that she was holding back her laughter. She knew full well that she had been able to trick him into thinking she'd done bad, and appeared to be thoroughly amused by it. "Fifth! Kei! That's… that's…. wow!"

"I couldn't have done it without you," she said, taking back her seat. Her eyes were back to being their flashing, predator-like selves that made Fuu so wary of Kei. He knew she wasn't afraid to smack him back down into place when he made a mistake.

'Hell, she's been doing it since we were six anyway,' he thought, and then his mind registered what she'd said. "What? Me?"

"Yes. You made me so angry, Fuu-sama, that all I did at first was imagine I was fighting you. I just pretended that every fight I had was against you, and you have no idea how well I fought," she laughed, making Fuu smile. When she saw him smile, she looked at him with a look of utter love, but Fukou wondered if it was the same kind of love he felt for her. Or was it just that she loved him as a friend?

Their dinner arrangement went on without incident. It was so blissfully normal—for them, anyway—that it was not worth remarking upon. They talked with casual conversation, and Kei was both relieved and a little sad at the fact that thus far, Fukou had not tried to romance her in any way at all. She missed the romance in her life. Where was the man who couldn't stop touching girls? Where was the man who could seduce an angel?

After dinner, they retreated to the living room, their lemonade in hand. They threw on a movie, and Kei was happy when Fuu unfolded the blanket resting on the back of the couch, and wrapped it around them both. It wasn't the first time he had done it, but as they were on a date it suddenly seemed like a very gallant act. They had curled up under the blankets before, but this time, Fukou wrapped his arms around her and held her close. Warmth and relaxation flowed between them. His fingertips were pleasant against her skin, gently stroking her arms underneath the soft wool of the blanket.

And yet, at the same time, Kei wasn't happy. Where was Miroku? Where was the smile she had seen flashed at every girl but her, where was the man she had loved five hundred years ago? She had always seen snippets of him when he flirted with other girls, and yet he had her in his arms now and he wasn't flirting with her, using his deep and melodious voice to his advantage. He wasn't even talking with her.

It made her feel unhappy. She felt childish and selfish. She was supposed to be trying to help Fuu, wasn't she? Was she fickle? Did she want Fuu now for the man he was in this life, or the one she had known all those centuries ago?

The movie was over too quickly for Kei. Fuu tilted his head to look at her. He looked very cute, she couldn't help but notice. He asked her if she wanted to watch another movie, or if she wanted to go home. There was a politeness in his voice and manners that she hadn't seen him use with other girls. She stared at him a moment, and her cheeks began to realize something.

'He is treating me like this is a date, he's just doing it in a different way than he has to all the other girls. He's showing me a side of him I never saw as his friend. He's just not being physical with me. I wish he would be… God, I wish he would be!'

"I should be getting home soon," she heard herself saying, cursing herself for always being the good daughter. For once, she wished she could break the rules and stay out past her curfew and stay up until 6 am curled up in a blanket with Fuu, resting her head on his sturdy chest, just as she had been doing for the past hour and a half. "But I would like to stay here longer… like this, with you."

Blushing, she rested her head back against his chest, and sighed. She felt his body relax a little. Had he been nervous?

'Ooh, say something Kei! Say something right now!' Her long lashes hid her eyes, and she curled her fingers in his shirt, pressing against him a little more. "You have no idea how much I wanted to be like this with you… being with you make me feels safe."

"Are you saying that you don't feel safe on your own, Kei?" he teased.

"I don't," she admitted, whispering. "Not all the time. But being with you, I feel like I can take on the scariest things in life. No matter what gets thrown at me, so long as I know you're there, I can take care of it. You make me fight harder, longer, and better in every way I can. You tell me that I can do things I think are impossible just be being there."

Her voice fell away, and she breathed in deeply. His scent was comforting, smelling like the cologne he was and with a hint of the sandalwood incense he burned in his room. "You have no idea how long I've just wanted you to hold me."

His arms tightened around her. "I'm holding you now…"

"I know," she laughed, feeling her eyes start to water. "I missed you, Fuu-sama."

That was what she said, but wasn't what she meant.

_I miss you, Miroku._

_I've missed you, husband._

_Where were you?_

_Where are you?_

_Come back to me!_

_I love you._

"I missed you too, Kei."

The fact that he meant every word of it made Kei start to cry out of pure happiness and guilt, and then he was kissing her in soft, feather-light kisses trying to make it better. Kei smiled, and the tears came harder when he brushed a tear on her cheek away. It was such a simple action, but it was unrealistic. It was a line from some lemon on-line, a scene from some movie, but he was really doing it…

She knew, right then, that she loved Fuu as much as she did and still loved Miroku. He didn't wear his emotions on his sleeve like Miroku had, easing around conversations he didn't want to have by smiling and manipulating words. He was, she realized, very much like Inuyasha had been. He used his emotions as a farce when he did show them, to manipulate people into getting what he wanted out of them, and the rest of the time he tried to be simply suave and non-emotional. He was afraid, she realized. He was afraid of being known.

"Fukou," she said softly, so gently that to him it sounded like a treasure. The way she said his name, it was like she held a treasure on his breath. It made his own breath catch as she looked up at him tearfully, her grey-eyes dotted with specks of robin's egg blue, her cheeks and her nose pink, her lips dark red. Even crying, she still looked beautiful.

He couldn't help himself anymore. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders and drew her up for a kiss. His lips pressed tightly against hers, demanding attention and receiving it with undeniable passion and need. He hadn't worried about getting slapped for making advances on her, he had just wanted, needed to kiss her, and now that he was, he moaned in passion, pressing her into the couch. His hands wandered, lacing into her hair as she kissed him back. Their kisses were quick, hungry things, and it didn't matter if half the time they missed and got a cheek or a bottom lip instead of both of them, what mattered was the feeling that burned between them.

Time began to mean nothing. Their kisses slowed. Kei felt like waves of happiness were washing over her as his kisses became languid, his lips running against hers, their eyes open and watching one another. Then his watch went off. They were so surprised that Kei jumped and accidentally kneed him and Fuu bumped his head on hers, suddenly slumping off the couch and holding his chest, trying not to cough.

"You know, Kei," he wheezed, "for a martial artist, you have horrible spatial orientation."

Kei only smiled down at him sweetly. She tapped a finger on his forehead. "It's _still_ Konseki-san."

He drove her home, parking the car in the drive way. Then came the hardest part of the evening. The goodbye part.

"Kei," he said, unbuckling his seat belt and turning to look at her. "Ke… Konseki-san… let's do this again."

Her voice was a little flat. She knew a goodbye when she heard one. 'This was fun. Let's do it again, sometime,' usually meant 'I don't want to see you again'. If that was how he felt she would respect his feelings. Her grey eyes stared ahead at the sharp light of her front porch. If she started looking teary-eyed again, she could blame it on that. "Okay."

"No, no," he said gently, taking her hand. His thumb stroked her knuckles. His touch drew her gaze away from the front porch light. "I mean it. Let's do this again. Soon. And often. I… I like going out with you."

"I like going out with you too…" she said softly, though she didn't look at him. She was a little afraid to… and she didn't need to. She knew exactly what he was feeling from his voice. He sounded… friendly, sincere, and hopeful. When Miroku was hopeful like that, he had the sweetest, most charming grin on his face. She didn't know what Fuu would look like, and she wasn't sure if she wanted to look at him or not. What if she looked at him and he still looked as serious and arrogant as he always did? All she wanted to do was to see him smile!

'Is… Is this what Miroku was doing to me all those years ago? Letting me pummel him, acting like a fool just to get me mad… because it was the closest I could come to smiling back then?' Kei started to smile, remembering all the times Miroku _had_ acted like a fool. She had been an idiot for not figuring it out earlier. All the things he had done in the name of lechery and perversion, all the times he had said something silly with a straight face, all of the remarks about Kagome and Inuyasha he knew they could hear just to get a loud response from them… they had all been for _her_ sake!

She turned to him with that wonderful smile on her face. "I want to do it again, and soon, Fuu-sama." She was pleasantly surprised to see that he was serious, but that when he looked at her smile, his face softened and lightened from pleasure, until she could see a ghost of a smile. "I like being with you."

"I work tomorrow and the day following it," he said, and she interrupted with, "and then it's the first day of school. Want to maybe just go out and get coffee after school's done?"

His ghostly smile turned into a real, but faint, one. "I would like that," he said, leaning closer and making her breath catch in her throat. He certainly was good at the intimidation, and at drawing attention to himself. His fingers tapped her nose, and some part of her mind took off giggling. Finally! He was flirting with her using his body as well as his mind! Now all he had to do was use his voice and she'd melt. "What do you want to do about our friends?"

"Let's not say anything at first. We'll just let them figure it out on their own. I don't want to start bragging or anything. And besides, we're just going out or coffee, right? It's harmless." She smiled at him, leaning into his touch when his fingertips brushed her hair. "And Fuu-sama? You can call me Kei, I guess."

She would never forget the broad smile that appeared on his face and that wouldn't leave. "Kei-chan it is, then," he purred to her. "But you have to call me Fuu. Not Fuu-kun, not Fuu-sama, just Fuu." She nodded eagerly, and when he kissed her goodbye, she practically did melt, enough so that when she climbed out of the car, she had trouble walking properly.

Standing at the front porch, she waved goodbye to him until the car had disappeared around the corner, the door open behind her so that she would know that she was getting back into the house properly. Kei walked upstairs to her bedroom, turning on the radio and grabbing the pillow. She buried her face in it as she bounced back on the bed, and then she suddenly squealed with delight.

Down the street and over a block or two, Fuu was stopped at a red light. Bored, he flipped on the radio, and came on. After a moment or two, he suddenly realized just how great the day had been.

He was going to go out on a second date with Kei.

He was _dating_ Kei.

His hands let go of the steering wheel and he looked up, cheering for joy.

Nothing could possibly bring him down now!

* * *

To be continued...


	18. Hands Clean

Comrade in Arms

**AN:** I feel like I'm staring at my own friends as I look at Shin, Fuu, and Jou in this chapter. I have such colorful friends…

I couldn't believe how many people thought something bad was going to happen to Fuu! No, fear not, nothing really bad happens to him for the rest of the story. And to clarify… he was _stopped_ at a red light when he took his hands off the wheel.

Ikigaru makes her first appearance in this chapter. According to the online dictionary I used the name means "one who tries to appear smart", and as you will see, it suits her quite nicely. Though perhaps that's a little mean of me... let's just say that I wholly echo Kei's sentiments regarding Ikigaru!

Starzki: Thank you! When I came up with Shin's character, I wondered if I was trying to hard to make the group diverse and instead rely on clichés. If you ever want to read the work of the person that Shin is based on (though Rob is dating one of my best friends, but he's still one of the prettiest guys I know!) let me know. …Rob looks more like a girl than I do, for clarification.

Fantastical Queen Ebony Black: Being able to cook is a sexy trait. I love watching my boyfriend in the kitchen. There's something about a man with a spatula…

Iggy: The voice in italics was Kei remembering Miroku. Same with the italics in this chapter. Fuu is aware that he was reincarnated, don't forget (handy dream sequence), but he doesn't have an active memory of it. So it's Kei remembering… unless it's a dream or after… well, after he gets his memories back. And you get a cookie for getting it right. That _is_ why Miroku is in such torment.

Pryrinsomiac: Wow… I like that idea. (_goes to write in a giant foot_)! And your right… their friends would notice… so she still calls him that in public.

Fireblade: If you recall, Kei is still bound by the limits of her body. Just because she has instincts and the desire to do something, it doesn't mean she actually can. That's what the classes and clubs are for: to try and bring back her old strength, stamina, and dexterity.

Micayasha: As far as I know, yes. I'm not sure what brought the question up, though.

Ninalee-chan: I love the new nickname! I'm so… eager to tell him, but at the same time… I think he's cut off my internet connection. Already he has one of my friends teasing him non-stop, and now people on It's a man's worst nightmare!

Enjoy… and don't gobble it all up at once!

Theme song: "Hands Clean" by Alannis Morissette.

* * *

Chapter Eighteen: Hands Clean

The days following their first date whizzed by in a flurry of shopping trips, as the parents of Kei and Fuu ensured that they had everything they would need in the next year at school. Upon arriving at school, the gang quickly met up outside of the building, greeting each other and trading stories and class schedules. It wasn't very long before Shin looked at the building proudly, as if challenging the building.

"Just think, guys, this is our last year of school here. After this year, it will be university, college, or work. We'll all be divided up from each other. We won't have any more of this school, any more of my food sculptures, or Fuu and Jou trying to out-prank each other… a legend is drawing to a close."

There was a moment of heavy silence before Jou smiled and laughed, clapping Shin's back. "Don't worry about it now, Shin! We still have a whole _year_ of school before we have to deal with all of us breaking up! Besides, we could all end up in the same university, you know that! Who knows what the future will bring! Not all changes are bad!"

Kei smiled to herself, enjoying Jou's silver lining to an otherwise sad cloud.

Neji also laughed. "Actually, some part of me wonders if I should just plain old drop out and get a job in the workplace sooner. With the marks that I've seen you three get," he said, pointing to Jou, Kei, and Fuu, "I know I won't be getting any scholarships into universities, and I don't think that I could even get in. I don't know if I want to even try. I've done so much right now, do I really want to screw up my life by accidentally becoming a permanent high school student?"

Kei smiled at Neji, and she regretted it almost as soon as she began to hear Fukou's teeth grinding together out of silent frustration. "That's still a far way away, Neji. You'll pass and get into a good university. I know you will."

He smiled at her flirtatiously. If he heard Fuu's teeth mashing together, or noticed the way he was boring holes into the side of Neji's head using his glare, Neji didn't seem to care. "Are you so sure of everything, Kei-chan?" He reached out and took her hand. Kei felt her feet take a step back, getting ready into a flight response as soon as Neji touched her. "What else do you see in store for me? Do you happen to see a date in the future for me?"

'Oh, come on,' she sighed, rolling her eyes mentally and plotting a way to get her hand away from his. 'He's being a little obvious, here! Even Miroku and his 'will you bear my children' thing was at least a little subtler and less self-interested as Neji's proposal!'

Luckily, she didn't have to think of a response, as Fukou came to her rescue. He took her hand from Neji's, and began to pull her toward the school. "Come on, Kei," he said, "let's go get our seats in the science classroom. I think that particular stool is lucky or something, and I don't want to lose it."

When they were alone, his grip on her hand relaxed for a moment, and then he dropped it, as if he was ashamed to be seen holding hands with her. Kei understood. If news got around that they were seeing each other, their friends would be hurt that they hadn't told them first. She would tell them… eventually, as soon as she found the way to do it without having Neji go and challenge Fuu in a duel over her hand, and Jou wouldn't laugh at them, waiting for the punch line.

"You don't have to be jealous of Neji, you know," she said quietly.

"I'm not jealous," he said quickly.

This time she openly rolled her eyes. Her glare was a little lazy as her eyes followed him into their old science classroom. She took her seat next to him. She hadn't missed the looks that her colleagues had been shooting her and Fuu as they walked into the room. The two had been in first and second place for science marks, English, and mathematics since their first year of high school. Kei couldn't begrudge the students their open animosity. In fact, she was a little happy that they _were_ being open about it. At least it meant that they weren't saying anything behind their backs.

'We must look perfect to them,' she thought suddenly, digging out a binder from her knapsack. Fuu already had his laptop open and was staring ahead at the blackboard, looking a little bored. Kei knew she wasn't going to be talking to him anytime soon, but she did eye him subtly. 'He's gorgeous, popular, and has his pick of any girls in the school. He's an athlete, and he's got a wonderful body, and this mysterious aura-thing that seems to attract the girls. As if social appeal, looks, and brains weren't already enough! I wonder how many people here know what the real Fuu is like, or what he's hiding in that mind of his…'

"Hey, Fuu-sama?" she asked gently, referring to him politely because of the public ambiance of the science classroom. "Last year, when you told the teacher that you wanted to be a gynecologist, have you put anymore thought into what stream you _really_ want to go into?" She recalled that they had had a conversation similar to this already, she was just curious if he had put more thought into it. After all, he had been getting better with the scalpel, so maybe surgery…

"I want to be a family doctor, you know? Or maybe just do something to work a lot with little kids. I really wouldn't mind working with kids at the hospital. But don't tell anyone. I want them all to think I'm in it for the girls." She smiled when he winked at her. Apparently he recovered quicker from his brooding moments than she had anticipated. Under the cover of their science seats, he reached over and held her hand. "And I know I don't have to get all jealous and protective of you when Neji is around. But he flirts with you—openly—and I don't like it. I know you don't reciprocate feelings for him or anything, but I can't help but get jealous anyway. I don't know why."

"I do." Her grin became sweet, her voice a little softer as she squeezed his hand. "It's because jealousy is a human reaction. It's normal, Fuu-sama."

Their talk ended as the teacher walked into the room, and their first day of the last year of high school began with them holding hands.

* * *

After school that day, they went to a café near the school for a muffin and a drink each. Taking a stool near the back, Kei found that she was already tired about trying to hide her new relationship from her friends. Part of it had been good. She liked the stolen touches that Fuu had given to her during the entire day. Whenever he had spotted the opportunity, he had touched her slightly: passing her a pencil and letting his fingertips slide across hers, letting the back of his hand brush hers, placing his warm hand on her back as he let her leave a room first. All the little things had made her smile like a fool in love that entire day at school.

But it had still been exhausting, and very nerve racking as she tried to figure out the best way to tell Neji and Jou.

His leg rubbed hers under the table, making her jump. She gave him a look of relief as she snapped back to earth. "Sorry. That feels nice. So what other classes do you have this year?"

"My last social course so that I can pass high school. I figured that I did so well with history last year, I might as well take it again. English, the biology course with you, and philosophy. Next year, I'll have mathematics, physical education, chemistry… and one other classes I can't recall right now."

"Sounds like a pretty good year." She was only a little surprised when he took her hand and looked at her pleadingly. He was in such a good mood, that it very much reminded Kei of the pleading look Miroku had given her when he had wanted to have sex with her, during the first few years of their marriage. It looked so much like the ghost of that pouting expression that Kei had to keep her laughter from getting out by covering her mouth with her hand.

"You're going to help me with math and chemistry, right? And with studying biology? And I'm going to help you with English, correct?"

"Of course, Fuu."

He smiled at her with relief. "Good. I was afraid of things changing on me. In all honesty, Kei, I don't like change. I like having things be exciting, but at the same time, to have a basic stability in my life, something I can depend on."

"I don't know," Kei said, sounding wistful. "Some changes are good, Fuu."

He leaned a little closer to her. His breath was warm on her ear, and he could feel her face grow hot as she blushed. His deep voice grew a little quiet, turning it surprisingly husky. "I know _that_, Kei. I was thinking more about the stability in my life than the changes. If Jou is correct, then at the end of this year, I'm going to be missing my main form of stability in my life."

It took Kei a moment to figure out what "stability" he meant. When she did figure it out, she lowered her eyes and relaxed a little, feeling her breath catch in the back of her throat. His cheek brushed against her forehead, and she shuddered a little bit, feeling like a ghost had passed her by.

'He means me. Oh! What the hell is wrong with me! First I start getting grumpy when he doesn't try and court me like Miroku did, and then when he does I start feeling like I'm talking to a ghost! See, Sango, this is why you weren't supposed to wake up! It makes life far too complicated!' She mentally groaned, thinking of Kagome and what she must have gone through. It was bad enough having her reincarnation piping up now and then in the back of her head, but what would it be like if Sango was actually up and about, walking around and trying to move in on Fuu?

"Fuu-sama…."

"Kei! Kei! Kei!" Jou ran into the café and towards them. The couple quickly jumped away from each other, dropping each others' hands. Luckily, Jou was too busy riffling around in his backpack to be able to see anything. He pulled out a math textbook, placed it on the table, and dropped down to his knees. "Angel, you have to help me! Please! I opened up the textbook to see what we would be doing tomorrow, and it's a review and I _don't even know what I'm doing anymore_! I've forgotten everything I learned with math! Please, you have to help me remember!"

Everyone—in the whole café—was quiet for a moment, staring at the pleading boy on his hands and knees. A smile kept on tugging at Fukou's face. Kei was red with embarrassment, not for her, but for Jou. The couple glanced at each other, and then Kei motioned for Jou to get up and sit with them in the booth, pulling out her own textbooks, as Fuu pulled out his. It looked as though both their one-on-one study group and their date had ended.

"Jou, it's really easy. It's just trinomials. We did them all last year, remember? There's a series of steps you have to follow…"

* * *

The rest of the day passed quickly. Martial arts classes with Inuyasha passed in the blink of an eye, and so did the rest of the school week. On Saturday, they once again ran into Kouga, and both of them were surprised the gym teacher hadn't hunted them down sooner.

He carried sign up lists for his fighting club, and he didn't even ask them this year if they wanted to join. He merely stuck the sin up sheets in front of them, and they signed their souls over to him. He grinned at them both, giving them the infamous thumbs-up sign of approval.

"This year is going to be great!" he said, clearly filled with energy already. Kei and Fuu sensed more morning drills coming for them. Kouga looked at Kei. "Thanks to you, Kei, getting all the attention for our school, we even have another girl on the team this year! She's a transfer from St. Hubert's School for Girls. And then there's that new girl that just came to high school this year. Her father owns a dojo! I'm so going to get her to sign up! Ayame will be so thrilled!"

He left them, still ranting about how great this year's team was going to be. Kei was wondering if maybe Kouga was a little bit mental after the number of times Inuyasha had thrown him into stuff. And nearly dying in the fight against Naraku probably hadn't helped, either. Fuu interrupted her thoughts.

"Who's Ayame?"

"What? Oh. Ayame-sama is his wife. She's very pretty. She's the red head that sometimes comes to our games. She also goes on all of the trips oversees with us, just to keep an eye on us. She jokingly calls us her 'pack' and that she has to come and see the 'pups' train."

"Hm. Sounds like she's a wolf," he remarked, throwing his books and his laptop over his shoulder. He stuck his other hand in his pocket, and continued to walk towards the main doors, where they would go outside and meet the gang for lunch. He smirked a little. "He would be nuts enough to marry a she-wolf. What about you? Are you excited about having two new girls on the team?"

Kei wasn't sure, and she told him just as much. "It's not like I'm territorial about being the only girl on the team, or because I _enjoy_ being mocked and ridiculed or anything. I guess I'm looking forward to having two more girls on the team. I just… well, I have a very bad feeling about this, Fuu-sama," she sighed, before looking at their spot and finding another girl sitting in _her_ spot.

So much for not being territorial!

Fukou was sensing the same thing when he saw that Neji was sitting in _his_ spot under the tree. For a moment he was even angry that somehow, Neji had managed to become cuddled up with the most stunning woman he had ever seen. She was so pretty that he even forgot that Kei even existed… for precisely 1.5 milliseconds.

Even though she was cuddled up with Neji, it was easy to see that she was a tall girl. Fuu guessed that she would be just a little bit shorter than he was. Most of her height was made up of leg. She had a _lot_ of leg. She also had a lot of hair. It hung down to her waist, and was a very dark shade of black with a slight bit of natural red highlights. Her eyes were a cinnamon shade of brown, with the smallest pieces of gold flecked. Her lips were perfectly formed, the color of strawberry wine held up in the light, and just as sparkly.

Kei noticed she was stacked and got a little jealous.

Seeing them approach, Neji smiled at them and waved them over. Both of them seemed completely oblivious to the way they walked over with open hostility. He just grinned deliriously, holding the giggling mass of hair and curves tighter. "Guys, meet Ikigaru. Ikigaru, these are my friends Kei-chan and Fuu."

"Hello, Kei. Hello, Fuu."

Kei's eyes narrowed at the way the girl said hello to Fukou. Her jaw was aching from how tightly she was holding it. Kei normally tried to avoid being persuaded by first-impressions, as it potentially made her lose a good friend, but this time, she couldn't help but feel anger towards Ikigaru. How _dare_ she cuddle with Neji—in _public_ none the less—and then greet Fuu with such informality and suggestion in her voice? She was practically inviting him to bed by making her voice husky and batting her eyelashes and running her long fingernails over her lips, while she was curled up with another man!

"Konseki-san," Kei corrected, before she spun and walked over to where Shin was calmly sitting, ignoring and being ignored by Neji and Ikigaru. She sat down beside her friend, clutching her lunch bag. Kei was positively rigid with anger, and Shin decided it was safer not to ask.

Ikigaru blinked again, her cinnamon eyes nervous as her bottom lip dropped slightly. "I don't think she likes me. Did I do something wrong?"

"No," Fuu answered, looking after Kei. "She was raised very formally, that's all. Just be a little politer to her and she'll warm up to you. If you don't mind, I have to go and calm her down."

"When did you become her lap-dog, Fuu?" Neji sneered, flicking his hair out of his gaze. He looked up at Fuu's straight face, carelessly not hiding his snide smile. "Let her get mad. It's good for girls to let it out of their systems, now and then. Otherwise, it all comes back to us, and at the worst possible time, too."

Fukou kept his face straight still. He stared down at Neji… and for a moment, he saw himself. He and Neji had always been so much alike! Were they still alike now? Was that how people saw him? Did he act like that? For a moment, an eyebrow twitched. No, no he wasn't like that! He would never be like that, never again.

In one instant, he had gathered up everything that he had always heard about women from Neji or his father and he tossed it completely out of his mind. It wasn't true. None of it was. It wasn't right, to do what they had been doing all of those years… and he was ashamed of it. He didn't blink as he stared down at Neji, whose resolve was beginning to deteriorate.

"Don't ever say anything like that about Kei again, or I'll break your wrist."

Silence.

He then smiled down at Neji, and waved sweetly. "Enjoy your lunch break, Neji-chan."

Ikigaru was silent a moment longer. Then she looked up at Neji. "Did he just call you Neji-_chan_?"

Fukou went over to the other side of the tree sitting down beside Kei. He pried the lunch bag from her fingertips. Kei tightened her grip, and he leaned back against the tree, wondering how to get her to calm back down again. He was still thinking when Jou sat down next to him.

The red-headed boy stopped laughing when he saw that Shin was hiding behind his sketchbook and that Kei and Fuu both wore the closest thing they could wear to scowls. That meant, of course, that Kei looked angry but thoughtful, and Fuu just looked plain pissed off. He finished approaching the tree cautiously. "Did I miss something? And who's the chick cuddling with Neji and sucking on his ear? Which is really gross—did Kei just say what I think she said?"

It had sounded a lot to Jou like Kei had just called the other girl a slut. Maybe he was losing his hearing…

"Sit down, Jou," Fukou said quickly. Jou dropped to the ground like a rock.

There was a tense moment of silence before Fuu continued, his eyes still staring straight ahead. His voice was as serious as his expression, though both had lightened considerably since Jou had arrived. "I've met someone, Jou."

"…" Jou weighed his options before he answered. He was probably signing a death warrant by teasing Fukou, but he would accept his fate with honor. "…You've met a lot of people, Fuu-sama."

For some odd reason, Kei tensed at that remark. Jou wasn't stupid. He saw it, and he saw that Fuu looked angry for the blink of an eye.

"I really like this girl, Jou. She's a great girl. She's smart, and friendly, and unlike anyone I've ever met before. She's the prettiest girl I've ever met."

'_All the males in your village must have been blind if they could not see the scope and breadth of your beauty_.'

"She's this amazing fighter who I know could kick my ass."

'_A female warrior who blushes, who smells like citrus and can beat me any day of the week with one hand tied behind her back_.'

Jou arched an eyebrow. He was so curious as to who he was taking about, that he missed the way that Kei was slowly turning to see Fuu talking, her grey eyes bright and her mouth open as she once again heard the man she had loved five hundred years ago break through for a moment.

"She sounds pretty cool. Who is she? Does she go to this school?"

Fukou simply pointed to Kei, who was blushing deeply, her hands pressed against her cheeks as she tried to hide the color. Even Shin was peeking around Kei, looking a little misty-eyed and red-faced at the way Fuu has chosen to tell his best friend he was dating Kei.

'Please don't ask if this is some kind of a joke! Please, please, please, Jou, don't ask if this is some kind of a joke!' Kei didn't want to hear it. Was the idea of them dating such a joke that people had to laugh at it every time they heard it? So what if she wasn't some pervert like he was! Did that really mean they couldn't love each other, just because Kei didn't go around kissing every guy she saw?

Jou merely sat back on his haunches, such an Inuyasha-like pose that for a moment Kei saw flashes of Shippo and tried very hard not to laugh. "Huh," he said simply. He shrugged. "Well, I figured it was only a matter of time since you two would start dating. I mean, have you two seen the way you acted with each other since we were six years old? How did it happen? Shin and I have been plotting getting you two together since we started high school!"

Kei's eyebrow twitched, and she made a mental node to give Jou a wet willie—or something equally disastrous. 'That's why he got us to go into that closet all those years ago! Jou you little _imp_!' She glanced at Fuu, and saw he was thinking the same thing as her.

"No! No, wait!" Jou wildly continued, clearly ecstatic for his two new friends. "_When_ did it happen? How long have you two been going out?"

"Are we going out?" Kei asked, wondering. Were they dating? Of course they were 'going out' because they were going out _to_ places, but were they dating? She asked it at the same time that Fuu answered, 'four days'. Apparently he hadn't heard her question.

"Four days, huh? Let's see… that means that you win, Shin." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a bill, handing it over to Shin.

Fuu was shocked. "You two took a _bet_ on when we would start seeing each other?"

At this point, Kei wondered who in the world had made up all the euphemisms for dating… because _obviously_ they were seeing each other, but she was also seeing Shin and Jou too! Her thoughts were interrupted when she intercepted the bill. "Exactly _when_ was this bet made, Kitsune-kun?" She laid her hand over Fuu's hand when he got a little mad that she called him by his old nickname. Kei wondered if maybe she should admit to Fuu that Jou had given her her first kiss, or if she should just sweep that fact under the rug…

Tapping his jaw and starting to open his lunch, he considered her question. "Um, just yesterday, come to think of it."

Kei pocketed the money, causing both boys involved to demand what she was doing. She looked at them with her cool, serious expression. "Shin helped me pick out what to where the first night I went out with Fuu-sama. He already knew when we had started dating when he made that bed, so it's null and void. And because the bet was about us, I'm going to keep it. Maybe that will teach both of you not to go betting on people's love lives!"

"I want my money back, then!" Jou cried.

"It's his fault for betting!" That, of course, was Shin.

"Konseki-san, I really think that I should keep the money. Your uniform doesn't have a pocket to keep it in."

She smiled at him before slipping the bill into her bra. Then she stuck out her tongue at him. "There. Now it's safe."

The boys looked at each other. They all grinned, and Kei suddenly realized her mistake. She had nowhere to run too as they all leaned in more.

"Kei, do you really think that having a bill down your bra is going to stop me? Because, really, I consider it _incentive_."

"Pervert!" Kei hid behind her lunch, looking back and forth between Jou and Shin. "You two aren't going to try and help him, are you? I mean…."

"I think Fuu-sama would understand, Kei-chan," Shin laughed, pushing aside her precious sketchbook. "After all, I don't like girls, so I'm not going to enjoy this at all, but it's my duty to help my friend." Fuu and Jou gave him incredulous looks and he shrugged. "Okay, maybe I'll enjoy it a _little_ bit."

"And Fuu knows that I don't have any interest in you whatsoever, because that would be like dating my little sister and it would be way too weird." He cracked his knuckles and he shifted into a pouncing position.

"Guys! Guys? GUYS!"

* * *

To be continurd.. in the next chapter... and yes, I meant to call Neji "chan". Fukou was supposed to be taking a strab at his masculinity, just to clarify...


	19. Save Me

Comrade in Arms

Theme: "Save Me"… you know, the one from Smallville?

* * *

Chapter Eighteen: Save Me

Kei was still bitter about the yen-in-bra incident a few days later, when the first of the morning practices were held. Of course, part of what had also made her bitter had to do with the fact that whenever she tried to be alone with Fukou, something had happened. Jou would show up, and they would start doing homework, or Fuu would get a detention or would have to go to work. Kei felt like the forces of the universe were against her and Fukou getting together, and the fact that it had always felt that way when she had been trying to be alone with Miroku did not escape her notice.

The other thing that kept her a little bitter was the presence of Ikigaru. Fukou never flirted back with her when she made advances towards him, but he never told her off, either. He just quietly ignored her, and let Kei stew in jealousy. She wished that Wolfsbane was still around she could have sent the husky after the airhead princess.

She had just finished locking her bike to her bike stand when she heard another bike coming up behind her. Glancing over her shoulder with a smile, expecting to see Fukou, she was heartbroken when she saw that it was Ikigaru. Her smile instantly turned into a glare, but before she could ask what Ikigaru was doing at school so early, she noticed the duffel bag hanging from the handlebars.

'You're kidding me!' Kei thought, her shoulders stiffening as the tall girl climbed off her bike, wearing the sweetest, prettiest smile that Kei had ever seen. She stood up, swinging her bag over her shoulder and heading towards the change room. When her back was turned, she sighed and gave the world a Look. 'I hate you all. This can't possibly get any worse!'

"Morning, Kei-chan!"

'…you _had_ to prove me wrong, didn't you? It just got worse. Now it speaks.'

"Konseki-san," she called over her shoulder, continuing in her bee-line to the gym.

She heard Ikigaru running up after her, her voice a little injured. "Okay, sure, Konseki-san. I guess you're not much of a morning person, huh?"

'Actually, for your information, I'm one of the sweetest people in the morning that you could ever meet. I just happen to dislike being greeted with an airhead princess first thing in the morning.' She really didn't want to be there anymore. Not even the ideas of making Kouga proud and seeing Fukou made her feel better. She could learn to share her place on the team with another girl, yes, but _not_ Ikigaru. She was a flirt, she was a giggling idiot…

And Kei hated her.

Something about Ikigaru told her that she was going to cause more harm than good.

Fukou and some of the friends she had made on the team were already there. They greeted her with smiles and handshakes, some of them even risking brief hugs as they congratulated her and wished her luck in her last year of high school. She smiled back at them, addressing them all in turn and giving them all a personal response, the way Sango had done five hundred years ago to her students. Fukou merely smiled at her proudly, staying out of the way and allowing Kei her moment of glory.

She could pinpoint the exact moment when Ikigaru walked out.

Everyone turned and stared at her as she emerged, finishing pulling her long hair into a bun. The short school shorts only enhanced how much of her was made up of leg, the tank top only showing off how well-endowed she was. Kei felt like an eleven year old girl in comparison.

"Well," Ikigaru said, twirling a loose strand of hair around her pinky and giggling. "What are you all standing around for? Isn't this a fighting club? Who wants to grapple me first?" There was, much to Kei's chagrin, a mad dash to be the first one to reach Ikigaru. Only Fuu didn't seem affected, and Kei noticed that when Ikigaru noticed the way he stayed protectively in Kei's shadow, _she_ was the one to look bitter.

"Not so fast, boys," Kouga said, walking out into the gym, his clipboard in his hand and his cocky smile plastered on his face. He removed the pencil from behind his ear and began to take attendance as he talked. He didn't even raise his eyes to look at them. He knew who was present by smell alone. "First, we do laps to get our heart rates up, then stretches, and then we can start doing drills. Get going, already. Everybody over to that side of the gym. Back and forth, you know the drill. Ten laps. Whoever comes in last gets an extra ten pushups."

It made Kei's day when Ikigaru came in last.

* * *

That night at martial arts class, Kei was toweling off her hair when she felt someone come up behind her. She smiled. _This_ time, she was well aware that it was Fukou. No body else could move so quietly, or with such stealth. Inuyasha was quiet, but Kei could feel him when he approached, because he had this feeling of power, and of _difference_ with him. Fuu, on the other, was like a ghost, or a void… he just _wasn't_ there…

And that scared her.

When she turned around, she was all smiles. Until she felt a hand land below the small of her back when she stood up. She froze, making a little, 'eep' sound at the same time that she heard Fukou sigh in pleasure. Kei swung around, her hand raised to deliver a good, solid slap to his face, but in the end she found that she couldn't do it. There was a look of such intense pleasure and happiness on his face, that her whole body stopped moving. She stood there, frozen, her hand raised and her lips parted, her grey eyes locked on his face.

The ground seemed to pulse under them.

His warm hand shifted up, his hand against her back, his arm wrapped around her side as his other hand brushed her cheek, feeling how hot it was from the way she was blushing. Her heart was pounding in her throat, making her feel uncomfortable and rather sickly. His hand was so soft and warm. She wanted to move a little closer to him, to lean against him and feel all of him.

'I love the way you make me feel,' Kei sighed, leaning her cheek into the hand that stroked the side of her face. Her eyes drifted close a little, enjoying the way that his hand seemed to conform to her body. He made her feel treasured and beautiful, until thoughts of everything else drifted out of her mind…

But she was awake enough in her dream-like state to realize that it didn't matter how he was treating her, she generally seemed to like it. Yes, she liked being romanced the most, but even when he was just treating her like a friend, Kei enjoyed it. She didn't want to be romanced all the time. She wanted what she had had in her last life, when she had been lucky enough to have her best friend as her husband.

'Romanced…' She lifted her eyes to look at the tree, the warm color of the bark enticing and the way the light bounced off of the waxy leaves making it look like the tree was aglow in the sunset. 'He romanced me once in this place, and now he's doing it again.' She closed her eyes, sighing, and letting him hold her closer, his finger adeptly taken her ribbon from her hair and lacing his fingers through it. His touch was so soft that it was like a ghost was touching her, and a shiver passed through her mind.

'He's doing it the same way he did then. I remember this. I remember every bit of it.' She buried her face in his shoulder to hide the way her bottom lip began to shake with the thought of Miroku. She breathed in deeply, letting his strong scent remind her mind of exactly who held her. 'Why is it that in this place, he seems more like Miroku?'

"Let me escort you home, please?" he asked quietly, stroking her hair and holding her close. His breath tickled her ear.

"I…"

"Fukou?"

Both of them jumped apart from each other as they heard Inuyahsha approach. The mad was scratching his bandanna—this one black laced with shiny red fire, making Kei wonder just how many bandannas he really had—clearly uncomfortable with having to hide his ears even after all the years he had been masquerading as a full human. He grinned when he saw what had been going on, but he said nothing. "Fukou, I need to talk to you."

He nodded and looked back at Kei, who nodded for him to go on. "I'll go see Kagome-sama and wait for you."

He smiled back, and her heart danced flip-flops. He looked as if he was about to say something, but instead he just let the words fall away and he hurried to catch up with his teacher. As he approached Inuyasha, unconsciously rubbing his hand nervously, he tried to ignore the way the voice in the back of his mind was so wary when he was around Kei. It was like he was judging everything he did to make sure that he wasn't about to accidentally offend her. He didn't want to hurt her. More than anything, he didn't want to hurt her.

But it was irrational that he would be so scared about hurting her. The odd thing was, it wasn't really hurting her… it was killing…

"How old are you now, Fuu?" Inuyasha seemed to have this thing for interrupting people's thoughts that evening, but Fukou was glad for the interruption. They were still walking, heading toward the well-house where they could have a little bit of privacy.

"I'm eighteen, sir."

"You're old enough to train for your black belt, you know that, right?"

Fukou nodded, looking suddenly very eager. "Yes, Sensei." Wouldn't Kei be happy for him if he managed to make the grading process?

"If you do make it, you know that you can teach, don't you?" Fukou nodded, and Inuyasha stopped walking, inside the well-house. He sat down on one of the steps inside the small building, pulling off his bandanna. Fuu was only a little disturbed when he saw the puppy ears stand up, nestled in Inuyash's silver mane. He was getting more and more used to seeing them, but there was still something a little unnatural feeling about it… and a little familiar at the same time. Fukou wished his thoughts would stop contradicting themselves. "Have you thought about teaching at all, Fuu?"

* * *

Kei stepped inside the house. Kagome was in the kitchen, a stack of papers in front of her and pens strewn about the kitchen table. It had been some time since Kei had seen Kagome. Mostly, when Kei came over for her lessons, Kagome was either away "at the cottage" or else too busy being a substitute teacher and a working adult to come and see the lessons she and Fukou were taking.

It was probably a little easier on her as well. It was weird to think that the person she had been blood-sisters with five hundred years ago was now old enough to be her mother.

And then there was the factor that Kei hadn't known about her life as Sango last time they had spoken… 'But this time,' Kei thought, sighing in happiness, 'I do know. What would Sango have said in this situation?'

Carefully, she opened her mouth. Kagome looked up when the front door closed behind Kei. The grey-eyed girl stared at Kagome, breaking into a sad but happy smile. "Hello, Kagome-chan."

Kagome froze. Then the pen was slipping from her hand and the paperwork she was doing was falling to the ground, and she was rushing forward, arms outstretched. Kei ran forward just as eagerly, and the clasped each other in a bear hug. Kagome buried her face in Kei's black hair, feeling like she was finally holding her best friend again. It had been hard seeing Kei, seeing her best friend, wander around and have her treat her like regular adult and not the blood-sister she had been.

"Sango-chan!"

Kei felt her eyes beginning to water. It felt so _right_ being called Sango-chan. "I missed you, Kagome-chan."

"I missed you too, Sango-chan."

There were many things that Kei wanted to ask Kagome: how her daughter was fairing, what time it was in the feudal era, how she had been coping with her new job, and a myriad of other topics, even down to the most inane things like movies and television. Everything didn't seem to fit; all the questions she had wanted to ask were no longer important. So the two just held each other, crying and taking comfort in being reunited.

* * *

Fukou looked away from Inuyasha, looking down at the cracks in the wooden floor. "I've never thought about teaching. I don't know why."

"I think you'd be good at teaching," his teacher told him. Like Fukou, he was staring off at something distant. "The way you already help kids in class testifies to that, and so does how you help Kei-chan with her English. You're a natural teacher, Fuu."

He shrugged. He really wasn't interested in teaching. He should have been leaping at the chance to teach a martial arts class, especially for someone as renown as Inuyasha (it had taken them some years, but when they had gotten to high school, they had discovered their teacher seemed to possess some kind of association with his name for taking down some big shot a number of years ago, though they never could find out who or how long ago). Fukou just felt like he had been there, done that, it was too blasé, and he wanted to try something new.  
"I want to be a doctor, Yasha-sensei. I should really look at getting into volunteer work, and getting to work with children. I can't teach."

"You want to be a doctor?" Inuyasha sounded surprised, and Fuu glanced at the corner of his eye to see that he was wincing a little. "It's not for the women, is it?"

"No," he replied, feeling his eye twitch. How come everyone always asked him that when he said that he wanted to be a doctor? He wanted to do it because… because… well, _because_!

* * *

"Does Fukou have his memories revived yet?" Kagome eventually asked, as she prepared some tea for herself and her friend. She looked over her shoulder to see Kei shaking her head. Kagome smiled at her, the wise and mischievous smile that Kei had known for the past five hundred years. "But he asked you out despite him not remembering what you two had in the Sengoku Jidai. That's wonderful, Kei-chan!"

Kei smiled back, feeling at ease. She had never realized just how friendly Kagome really was. There were talking about something that Kei rarely would have thought a seventeen year old girl and a woman not her mother would ever talk about, and Kagome was managing to pull off the conversation with this perfectly blend of maternal wisdom and friendliness. It was exactly the Kagome Kei remembered, for which she was glad.

Miroku had changed. If everybody she had known had changed, while she felt like she was still the same person she had always been, Kei would feel terribly lonely. There was another matter at hand which made Kei feel a little bit uneasy, and rather confused…

"He asked me, Kagome-chan, but…" She felt her cheeks grow warm as she held the tea that Kagome had poured for her, letting the familiarity and the warmth sink into her bones until she felt comfortable enough to proceed. "Sometimes, he acts like Miroku, and I feel bad because I feel like I love him the most when he's happy and flirting with me. I love him for being Fuu, I know I do, but I love him most when he's acting like a man who's been dead for five hundred years. Am I _in_ love with him for being Miroku back then, or am I in love with him now? Am I wrong for wanting him to be more like Miroku? I just… I don't know."

Kagome thought about this.

* * *

"Look, Fuu-kun," Inuyasha said eventually, leaning back on the stairs and staring at the well. "Kagome and I… we have to go away. I don't know how long we'll be gone. Kaede is going to be staying with her grandmother. Some of our friends… well, one of them probably won't live to the end of your school year," he said simply, his voice and gold eyes frank.

For some reason, Fukou felt a chill pass through him.

"We want to be there with her, and to be there with her husband, and help make things a little easier for them. I need someone to look after the house for us, to do the same things you always do: to sweep up the dirt and the leaves, and take in our mail and keep Kagome's herbs and plants watered. I was hoping I could trust on you again."

Fukou nodded. Of course he'd help with that stuff. He always did. And besides, he loved working on the Higurashi shrine.

"But we also need to keep income coming in. Kagome can't be substituting where were going. That means we have to rely on you, I think, Fuu. You're the first kid I've taught that's made it to the black-belt level. Not that that surprises me, kid. You always did have a talent for fighting. We couldn't pay you a lot, Fuu. But I'd continue teaching you for free, if you worked for us."

He didn't need anymore persuading. He'd do it. Fukou was jumping at the chance to teach it, more than he ever thought he would jump at the chance to teach. Yet two nagging feelings persisted in the back of his mind. One was regarding Kei. The other was, for some unknown reason, a fear of failure… as if lives depended on him being a good teacher…

"What about Kei? I'd… I'd feel weird teaching her, Sensei. Especially since… I kind of asked her out."

Inuyasha's gold eyes widened a little, and Fukou thought he saw the faintest smile for a second, recognizing the way his sharpest teeth indebted his bottom lips when his mouth tightened up in a smile. Then he was back to looking serious, the far side of his mouth twitching vaguely as he tried to remain composed. "I see… that would be a problem. Well, Kei is as good as you are, though she lacks the training you've been getting. In fact, I think you two are evenly matched no matter what you two do. I'll talk to Kei. She may be able to come in during the classes for little kids, just so that they can use her as an opponent, and that way you have a little bit of help in dealing with the munchkins. In return… maybe I'll give her private lessons or something, something to make up for the classes she'll be missing. Anything else on your mind, Fuu?"

* * *

"Why do you like him most when he acts like Miroku? No, better question. How exactly does he act like Miroku?" Kagome arched an eyebrow suspiciously, with more maternal protectiveness than Kei had seen in her yet. "Is he groping you again and being perverted?"

"Yes… I mean, um… He is being a pervert now and then, but he's an eighteen year old boy. It's practically expected of him. But that's not what reminds me of Miroku. It's just… his smile. When he's in a good mood, he has that exact same smile. The one that's stupidly happy and relaxed and warm and a little goofy."

Kagome smiled, sipping her tea. "You mean that face he gets when he gropes you? I remember that one well." Kei smiled back, stifling a laugh, and she nodded. Kagome was quiet a moment before continuing. "It seems to me, Kei-chan, that you don't _really_ like him for acting like Miroku. Miroku was one in a million, Kei-chan. He had this amazing ability to smile through pain the likes of which you and I can't understand. And what's more, he had the ability to make other people smile despite their pain, which is an even rarer gift. You love the fact that he's happy, I think. You love his smile, and that you know it's you that makes him happy."

"How do you know for sure?" Kei asked, sounding uncertain.

"Because I make Inuyasha smile. I love him most when he smiles, because I love him for being happy and making me feel happy. It's just… it's just the way humans seem to be built, Kei-chan. Do you like hanging out with someone who is always crying, or someone who makes you laugh and smile?"

Kei saw where this was going and was quick to answer. "I like it when they make me smile and laugh."

"Does seeing Fuu-kun smile make you smile back at him?"

"Yes."

"Does it make you feel good?"

"Yes."

Kagome smiled. "Then you love him for being Fuu, Kei-chan, and you love him for smiling even more. I've seen his smile. I can understand how you would love it. He does have an amazing smile, and it is almost identical to Miroku's." She poured Kei another cup of tea, pushing her dark hair over her shoulder as she sat back down. Passing Kei a plate of cookies, she finished, her voice soothing.

"Miroku is going through a hard time right now, Kei. No doubt, everything that happened to him in the last lifetime had some resounding effects on his soul. A curse on his family line, the pain he shared with you over the loss of your family, the pain of trying to start a family… they aren't things that a soul will easily forget. All I can suggest to you is to do your best to make him smile, and to make him feel safe and slowly ease away the things that have hurt him."

Kei had heard something like that once before. She accepted a cookie and leaned in a little, trying to understand. She had almost gotten a hold of it… "I have to do what?"

"Hm… to put it simply: heal Miroku. I mean, heal Fuu-kun. If you do, then he'll start being more like Miroku, because he'll start to smile more. You have to take the bad things in his life, things like the things his father told him, the curse of his family, the nightmares from the Sengoku Jidai, and everything else that scarred him in even the smallest way, and you have to ease them out of him. It's a daunting task, and I wish I could give you some more instruction on how to do it. I don't even know how I did it with Inuyasha."

Kei understood what Kagome meant. Inuyasha had been arrogant, and brash, and a handful of other things, and he had really matured by sharing his life with Kagome. He had stopped taking everything she said as an attack, and had learned to relax. That was much the same thing that she needed to do with Fukou.

"And… and if I don't?"

Kagome shrugged, uncertain. "I don't know. But I would guess that he will become more like the Fuu I knew when he was five years old, a boy who was cruel and pushed people away and reserved and who never smiled unless he was making someone feel as crappy as he felt deep down."

"In other words, he'll become the exact opposite of the man I loved…" Kei finished, finally understanding what Sango had told to her. She had said that she needed to save Miroku's soul, and now Kei knew how, and why. If she didn't try to help ease over the scars that her presence had helped to etch into Miroku's soul, she'd lose that wonderful, charming pervert who had promised her that he'd never leave her.

But how was she supposed to help fix something like a _soul_?

Before she could ask Kagome, she heard yelling out from the main courtyard of the shrine.

"Get back here! Shut up, Inuyasha!"

"Fuu loves Ke-ei! Fuu love Ke-ei!"

Both females rushed outside to find Inuyasha dancing along the courtyard, barely dodging blows from Fuu and a staff he'd grabbed. The hanyou was grinning, his ears standing on top of his head as he continued to tease Fukou, chanting, 'Fuu loves Kei, Fuu loves Kei' in a sing-song voice.

Kei sighed when she saw it. She hid a smile behind her hand, seeing that Kagome was already doing the same. Coughing, she regained her face and looked with deadpan eyes at Kagome. "I don't suppose that Inuyasha is still wearing his necklace?"

"No. It's times like this that I regret taking it off of him." Kagome suddenly grinned. "Not that I need it anymore… _Inuyasha_!" she yelled in her mother-voice. Inuyasha suddenly stopped, and amazingly, so did Fukou, though Kagome hadn't yelled at him. She calmly walked over to her husband and placed a finger over his third eye, staring up into his gold eyes. "Grow up a little, will you? Stop teasing Fuu-kun."

"Grow up?" he growled, suddenly grabbing Kagome and lifting her around his waist, pressing his nose against hers. "Listen, wench, I have grown up!"

Kei sighed. "Some things never change," she sighed, watching Inuysha and Kagome start to play fight with each other. She had to admit that she was a little bit jealous of them… and then she felt Fukou move closer to her and she felt a little bit better, a little less lonely. She reached out and took his left hand… and then changed her mind.

"Is something wrong?" Fuu asked, sounding concerned despite the mask he was wearing over his features. Kei's wonderful smile made the mask falter a little as he felt her warmth melt away even more of the iciness that had enclosed his mind, bringing nightmares and dreams closer to the surface of a suppressed identity.

"Fuu-sama… will you please let me hold your _right_ hand?"

He stared at her. Was she crazy? What difference did it matter if she held his left or his right hand? He moved to her other side, but as he took the three steps to move to the opposite position of where he had been, his right hand began to feel warm and tight, clammy, as if something were enclosed around it, keeping in the warmth of his body. He felt a bead of perspiration slide into the center of his palm. He wanted to change his mind. He wanted to say no. He didn't want her getting close…

And then her hand was in his. If it really was clammy, Kei didn't say anything, nor did she seem to care in general. He began to feel relaxed as her skin cooled his, her palm pressing against his. His muscles relaxed, and he stared down at her, awestruck that she elicited the responses in him that she did.

From that point on, she was always holding his right hand.


	20. Remember Me

**AN**: This is just a cute little chapter, explaining a little bit more about how Fukou thinks. And also because I really, _really_ wanted to have a San/Mir moment and have Miroku randomly appear.

Oboe: I know. Inuyasha's a big tease, isn't he?

Lily: I hope you liked your first convention! Mine rocked socks! I managed to get Joan III for five dollars! (_dances__ like nobody's watching_) Now all I need is to find book two.

Ikigaru: Mixed feelings on her so far. Don't worry. I'm certain that most people will grow not to like her by the end of the story. She's a little bit… psycho.

The right hand: It was cute. While there wasn't much mention of Fuu's right hand except during the first few chapters when he had (for lack of a better term) ghost pains. So don't worry, Ninalee-chan. You were paying attention. That was more my fault (not mentioning it). I just always thought that the kazaana, even though in the companion piece, he did get rid of it, I thought that it would still leave a scar on his soul because he was something which scared him and that his whole life revolved around for the first twenty-somewhat years.

And thank you to every who reviewed. I can't believe this story has gotten 400 comments already! It seems like just yesterday I was breaking out a coca-cola for getting to the 300 mark.

Anyway, that's all for me right now. This chapter is short, and I don't want to make it all AN.

Enjoy!  
Theme song… is stupidly right for this chapter…

"Remember, I will still be here, as long as you hold me, in your memory.

Remember, when your dreams have ended, time can be transcended, just remember me."

by Josh Groban, "Remember Me", from the Troy soundtrack

* * *

Chapter Nineteen: Remember Me

_"Wait for me!" he cried, rushing after her. He caught her hand, distracted for a moment when the light shone off of her ring. Her body was warm in his hand. She was pulled to a stop, under the canopy of the Goshinboku. His face was concerned as he looked at her. "What… what is it?"_

_"K… Ka…" For a moment he feared she was going to say 'Kagome'. Then she turned around, and he didn't even get to see her face before she was throwing her arms around his neck and clinging to him out of desperation. "Kari! It's her child. She… she wasn't strong enough. The baby couldn't make it… it died… in her arms, the poor little thing died!" She sobbed into his chest. Her breath was burning hot against his skin._

_His body felt distant with the shock, with the thought that the little child who had smiled up at him only a few days ago was currently being prepared by his daughter for burial. Slowly, the numbing feeling disappeared and he was able to hold her back, wrapping his strong arms around her shoulders and pressing her closer. Fat raindrops dripped down from the drops of the Goshinboku._

_"Shh… don't cry, Sango. It will all be okay. It will all work out, I promise you it will."_

_"You don't know that!" she sobbed. "It's not fait! It's not fair at all! Kari and Yugo deserved that baby! They're good people! They deserve to raise a child, they'll be good parents. How can you say it will all work out when you don't really know that it will?"_

_"I'll make it better. Somehow, I'll make it better, Sango. Now don't cry." Sango lifted her head from his chest and he leaned down, kissing away the drops on her cheeks. The rain still fell, coming down harder. There was a slight chill in the air. His kisses came faster, as he promised her over and over that he would make everything better, just as long as she would stop crying. Finally, she smiled at his soft little kisses and managed to laugh._

_"I'm sorry. Just… just stop groping me, you perverted monk!" she laughed, brushing his graying hair out of his eyes. She gazed up at him, serious. "I love you. How is it that you always know how to make me smile?"_

Don't say my name!

_He smiled back at her, rubbing his nose against hers and leaning his forehead against hers, his lips barely touching hers. "I'm a miracle worker, Sango. I work miracles for Buddha."_

_"Making your wife laugh is a miracle from the Buddha now, is it?" she asked, pushing him playfully away and laughing._

For the love of God, don't say my name! I don't want to wake up! I don't want to wake up!

_"Ah, my love, you've never seen your smile. It's a miracle all on it's own. It's the most divine thing in existence!" he praise, moving closer to her._

_Sango rolled her eyes, crossing her arms. "I swear to god,"_

Don't!

_"Mir…"_

_He grabbed her and kissed her roughly, his lips running over hers. She made a muffled sound of protest before she relaxed against him, leaning against his body. Sango still couldn't believe that her husband was so passionate about kissing her sometimes. The feeling of his mouth pressed against hers still took her breath away with exhilaration and surprise sometimes._

_"What are you doing?" she demanded when he let go of her to scoop her up into his arms, one of his hands on a certain beautifully shaped part of her anatomy._

_"My dear wife," he purred nuzzling her neck as he carried her back to the house. "I'm going to go and make love to you and make both of us smile."_

_

* * *

_

_Fuu felt like he was floating in nothingness. He was confused by what he had just seen and heard. He had been in the body of another man, with a strange woman who seemed painfully familiar. They stood under the tree at Kagome's shrine, even though there was no shrine surrounding the tree. He had been in that strangely familiar body, and had heard the thoughts of the man… or had they been his own thoughts? Which mind had been praying not to hear their name being said out loud? And why in the world would Fuu be dreaming he was in someone else's body in the first place?_

_He awoke with a start, finding himself at his computer desk, his head in his arms. The screen of his laptop glowed an eerie shade of blue. The screensaver. He nudged the mouse so that the screen flickered back to the page he had just been on. "I must have fallen asleep doing homework," he told himself sleepily._

_He began to type away at the keyboard, yawning and covering his mouth with his shoulder. He growled a little. He was still sleepy. He hated doing homework when he was still sleepy. It was so hard to concentrate… and his dream had been a little unnerving_. 'Thank God I'm awake…'

_"Are you really sure that you're awake?" a voice asked him. It was deep, masculine… and disgusting sensual, like every syllable was important and had to be perfectly correct. "What do you know Fukou?"_

_He recognized the voice. He had heard it before, long ago, when he was dreaming. It squatted at the back of his mind in his dreams like some vile, intrusive slimy toad, looking at his dreams, at his innermost thoughts and nightmares. He hated that voice. He looked over his shoulder, and found the man from his dreams laying on his bed. The man seemed to radiate wisdom and sex. His legs were sprawled out, folded over one another, his broad shoulders braced against the head board, his head bowed, a cowlick in his dark hair making it seem disarrayed, his eyes hiding behind his dark lashes. He wore the robes of a monk, and a staff was leaning against the length of his body, secured by his folded arms. _

_Angry at the interruption, he jumped up, looking around him, waiting for an attack, rather than answering the man._

_The man at the bed merely smirked infuriatingly and looked up at him, his soft eyes sad and mildly entertained. "Put your fists down, Fukou. I'm not here to fight you. I'm here to find out what you've already figure out, about me, about us."_

_"What the hell is this?"_

_"This? Oh, well," the man smiled, gesturing at the mental duplication of Fukou's bedroom. "I thought it would be better if we talked in an environment with which you are familiar. Would you prefer talking in an environment with which _I_ am familiar?"_

_"No, no, not really. This will do…" He sat down, and he exhaled, ruffling his hair as he ran his hands over his head. Fukou took a deep breath, then looked at the man lounging on his bed. "I was right, all those years ago. The reason why I was different was because I am reincarnated. I have a young body, but my soul is old. I'm not supposed to remember what happened to me, and I don't want to remember what happened to me, but something keeps on tugging at my memories, trying to get them to awaken. I don't know why, or who."_

_He smiled, and he didn't offer Fukou any help. "Do you recognize the woman from your dream?"_

_"No…"_

_"Good," he snapped, laughing suddenly and shifting on the bed, looking lazy and arrogant. "If _you_ remembered anything about _our_ wife, I'd have to kill you. Those memories are personal."_

_"You know, you seem happy, if infuriating. Why the hell aren't I supposed to remember you?"_

_"You can remember me, Fukou. All you have to do is reach into your mind and lift the wall you've built between us, but you don't want to. You're scared, scared of all the bad things that have happened to me in the past. You've taken all of the bad things on yourself, and locked them away in your part of our mind. I am reflected back into you, but you reflect only the negative. You have to learn how to accept all of me, Fukou. You can't just take the bad things and try to forget about them; you need to able to accept the love, and the laughter, and the friendships that I had. Only if you accept all of me will we ever be able to live in harmony, Fukou!"_

_He was speaking faster, more urgently, trying to make Fukou understand. The things that had scarred him had scarred Fukou too, and he refused to open his mind anymore, fearing that there were more sad things for him to accept. The phone on the nightstand began to ring, making Fukou jump._

_The man on the bed began to look sad. "Fine. You don't want to accept it? Good. Good! Then don't! Give me back all of my nightmares, Fukou, and I'll go away again! But so long as you keep hanging around Kei, I'll continue to awaken!"_

_"What does Kei have to do with any of this?" he demanded heatedly, protective of his friend._

_"Duh, you idiot!" The man lunged forward, and knocked Fuu's head with the rod of his staff. "She's the reason why I keep on trying to wake up! She's trying to get me to wake up! You can't live without accepting the things that I am, the things that I stand for, Fukou, not without being half a person! I was a full person because I accepted the good and bad things in life, but you only accept the negative because you fear the pain you'll feel after experiencing the good. Well, life is pain and happiness. It's up and it's down. If you keep on staying down, you're going to let life pass you by, and you'll have never really lived. Kei knows that. She's trying to help you!"_

_"How the hell is she trying to wake you up?" he demanded, yelling now over the ringing phone._

_"Because she knows us! She knows you! She knows you so well that the ringing phone is her calling to make sure you're okay because she knows you're having a nightmare!" He lifted his right hand and Fuu finally noticed the glove wrapped around the man's hand, secured by a ring and a string of prayer beads. "She knows us so well she's taking every advantage to take this hand because I didn't have it for more than two decades of my life! She knows us so well that she can still hold her own against you without all those years of training because she knows your moves, each and every one of them."_

_Fukou was ignoring him, walking around the bed to the ringing phone. The man leaned his arms on the bed, yelling back at Fukou and losing the cool composure he had kept for so long. "God, what the hell happened to me that I would become so arrogant and bitter? Fine, you want to pick up the phone? Go ahead Fukou, go ahead and pick up the phone! But if you pick up the phone and you go back to her without remembering me, you'll hurt Kei, I swear you will."_

_"I'll _never_ hurt Kei," he growled back, his hand tightening around the receiver._

_"Famous last words," the monk sneered. "If you hang around her, you'll hurt her, and then I sweat to Buddha I'll find a way into that world and I'll kill you myself. All she has to do is say my name, Fukou, that's it. Three syllables, and I'll wake up, because no barrier that you could ever make will keep me dormant once I hear that beautiful, shining soul say my name. Kei will be the ruin of one of us, or both of us. Now will you please, just listen to me?"_

_"…No." Then he picked up the phone._

* * *

"Hello?" he yawned into the phone.

"Fuu-sama!" Kei said from the other end of the line. "Are you okay? I woke up and I… I just felt the need to call you."

He smiled with relief, grabbing the phone and bringing the whole thing with him into the bed, pulling the covers over his head. He hugged his pillow closer, wishing that his pillow was Kei. He sighed. "I just had a bad dream, Kei. I'm fine. I'm sorry that I worried you. Go back to bed, Kei-sama. …wait. Kei?" He paused, trying to make his voice work. He chose his words carefully. "Kei… if you were hurt in the past and you never wanted to experience that kind of pain again, what would you do?"

She was silent, considering his question. "I don't know, Fuu-sama. I'd be scared about going out into the world, if I had been _really_ hurt, but at the same time, I know that I would need to go out and live. I couldn't hide. You can't hide from pain, just like you can't hide from pleasure. The two will find you, no matter what. It's all just a matter of opinion. I guess….

"I guess if you think about it, Fuu-sama, life is like a road with lots of ups and down. No, in this case, more like a roller coaster! If you fight going up hill into happier times, then you're going to miss all the beautiful scenery and excitement on the way up. And if you sit at the tope fearing the way down, then you're going to be able to miss looking around. And if you're by yourself when you go down, it's really hard, but if you have someone to hug and scream with and then to laugh with, you'll be just fine, so long as you have a friend like that."

"…Kei, are you my friend like that?"

"Yes, Fuu. I'm your friend like that. As long as you accept me, and you're not the one who hurts me, I'll always be with you. I never want to leave you."

"I'll never hurt you, Kei."

"Don't promise me things you can't always guarantee. I promised never to leave you, and I did, even if I did come back to you. That's why I had to change my promise. I promise now that I'll never want to leave you. And part of me never will leave you, Fuu."

"I mean it, Kei! I'll never hurt you."

He thought—he _knew_—she was smiling on the other end of the phone line. "Is there anything else you wanted to ask me, Fuu? We really should go to bed. We have to get up for school in two hours. Those 120 minutes of sleep are looking pretty good."

"No, there's nothing else, Kei-sama. Go to bed."

"Okay. Good night, Fuu-sama. No more nightmares. I don't want to have to phone you again."

"Good night, Kei-sama."

* * *

Till next time I update...


	21. Try Honesty

**Author's Notes**: Well, short and easy today, because for some reason I can't open more than one internet window, which is what I normally do for responding to reviews. I hope everyone is doing well. For those of you studying for exams, take a little break and enjoy the chapter. Then study, and good luck on exams! I hope you all kick some major ass! For those of you not in exams, I hope you enjoy your weekend.

* * *

Chapter Twenty-One: 

Try Honesty

The fall season passed quickly for Kei and Fukou; too quickly. It seemed that one day they were purchasing pens for the start of the school year, and then they were getting ready to take their exams before the winter holidays. In that time, they had not been able to spend as much time together as they would have liked. Inuyasha and Kagome still had not returned from their visit to wherever it was that they had gone, and Fukou was still teaching classes, having completed all degrees to earn his black belt. The teaching left him often grumpy and moody as he wondered what he could have done better, or different.

Kei, for her part, ransacked her old memories, new and past life, for answers to his questions. She found, much to her surprise, that he was using all the old techniques, the ones that Sango and Miroku had used centuries before. The tactics and lessons they had used to teach hand-to-hand combat didn't seem out of date to Kei, and so she wondered what exactly it was that made Fukou feel their old system of teaching wasn't useful still.

Before she could wonder more on those questions, though, the time seemed to fly by, and school and lessons interrupted her thoughts. Rather than wondering about how to make Fukou become happier and open up to her more, she found herself plotting ways to maim or hurt Ikigaru. Despite the seemingly serious relationship Ikigaru had with Neji, she continued to flirt with Fukou. Fukou, as busy as he was with school, practice, teaching, a relationship with Kei which seemed to be on pause, and keeping house, was so out-of-it at these times that he didn't even notice Ikigaru. Kei wouldn't have minded so much that Fuu ignored Ikigaru's advances, if he wasn't also at time also ignorant of her.

During one of the few dates they had been able to schedule and actually have time for, they were halfway through their dinner when he suddenly seemed to zone out, leaning his cheek on his hand and staring at her. Kei stared back, putting down her chopsticks. "What is it?" He didn't answer her, he merely continued to stare.

Kei lowered her face and began to eat again. She felt herself starting to blush, and tilted her head slightly, letting her hair fall between herself and Fuu to hide her blush. She heard the squeaking of a chair on the floor before she felt his fingertips gently pull back her hair, pushing it behind her ear so that he could see her face once more.

"Fuu …"

For a moment he looked disoriented, as if he wasn't aware of reacting so quickly to reaching across the table and revealing her face. Then he looked nervous, weighing the options of his words. Her face continued to darken as she watched him, finally noticing how close they were when she felt his breath on her lips and cheeks. He slowly smiled at her. "Don't do that."

"Don't do what?" she inquired, searching her green eyes and filling her heart with drowning hope.

"Don't hide your face when you blush," he said. He wasn't removing his hand from the side of her face. His fingertips moved slightly, tracing the outline of her ear and sinking into her hair. "It's becoming on you, and I love seeing it. It reminds me just how sweet you are, and how despite everything, all the fighting and the boyish things you do, that you're the sweetest girl I know, and nothing can ever blemish you, hold you back, or keep you in away way from… from simply being you, from being Kei."

Kei smiled at him softly and then leaned in, pressing a chaste kiss against his lips. "Thank you, Fuu." She demurely lowered her eyes as he sunk back into his chair, both of them still unsure as to what had caused the sudden outburst in Fukou. "That was very nice of you to say."

"Don't thank me for telling you the truth," he snorted, making Kei giggle. Her sullen warrior was back, but the smile on his face refused to go away.

* * *

She wondered often, after that night she'd made dinner for him, what exactly had begun to cause the change in Fukou. Unlike the incident which had made him more receptive to touching her with his right hand, she could think of nothing she had done to warrant being spoken to so gently. It never occurred to her that maybe her presence alone was enough to make him happy, and for the man she loved to emerge all on his own.

By winter break, they were both slightly stressed out. They had arranged a study date—just the two of them—for their science class, but by the time it had rolled around, neither of them had the energy to be able to study. They lounged instead in Kei's room, having idle conversation, and cuddling.

"Where are you going to apply?" Kei asked him.

"Dunno," was the answer. "But some of my teachers have been trying to encourage me to go overseas."

"Same here." Kei giggled, pulling out the ponytail which secured his hair and running her fingers through it. His dark hair was as soft and silky as fur. Instantly, his body relaxed more, leaning his head into her hand, and his eyes closed out of contentment. She smiled down at him, remembering the way Miroku loved to have her do that. He put up a good fuss, telling her that she was messing up his hair…

"You should stop that. You're going to mess up my hair."

For a moment, out of surprise, Kei did stop. Had it just been her imagination, or…

He butted his head against her hand, smiling, his eyes closed. "Never mind. Do it again. That felt really nice and relaxing." Her hand began to move through his hair again.

Slowly, she built up the courage to touch him more. Her hand stopped being confined to his hair alone. She gently stroked his neck, and his back. He sighed out of pleasure and relaxation, until she leaned over him, wondering if he was asleep. One eye opened lazily, and he grinned, grabbing her and wrestling her under him as she squeaked with alarm and playfully tried to wriggle away. His lips found hers and she surrendered to them willingly, her body quieting as their lips met and touched and parted repeatedly, nothing more than chaste, simple kisses. She loved those kisses. They were lighter than air, and impossibly soft, slow and innocent at the same time. They sent shivers down her spine and made her mind silence itself so quickly, it was like the shot of a gun.

As he kissed her, she thought about something, but then his lips brushed hers again and the thought was kissed away.

"You amaze me, you know. How do you do this?" She opened her eyes, licking her lips, and finding him staring down at her. Fuu's expression was so puzzled that it looked utterly adorable, and she had to try very hard not to smile at him. His arms braced on either side of her, she had to lay there and look up at him, her hands lazily tracing patterns randomly on his forearms.

"How do I do what?"

"This. How do you make me feel like _this_…"

"Like what?" she prompted again, becoming more confused.

"Like… never mind. It's silly, and it's not important." He quickly backed off, letting Kei sit up s he turned his back on her.

Kei had tried to reach him before he was ready to admit to anybody that he didn't have all of the control over himself when he was around her that he would have liked. She wasn't like other girls, where he had all the control in their relationship. He couldn't ignore the way she touched him, the way her body felt against his, the feeling of his breath or his scent, or the way she kissed him back because he truly did care about her. He really did like her, and that had given Kei power over him. When she was scared, so was he; when she was angry, so was he; when she was happy, which she often was, he felt like he was on top of the world.

She folded her hands in her lap, studying the profile of his back. She hadn't noticed it before, but his shirt wasn't actually black. His tight jeans were pitch black, but the shirt was actually the deepest color of green. 'Come to think of it, he stopped wearing all black just after we started dating. They are still dark colors, but they aren't all _black_…'

Sitting behind him, her eyes locked on his shoulder, waiting for him to turn, her question returned. "Fuu-sama?" she asked, and she thought she heard him shudder a little. Her question was once again deterred, this time by another question. "It really _does_ bother you when I call you that, doesn't it?"

He nodded, but he didn't say why. With more caution and gentleness this time, rather than rabid curiosity, Kei inquired why.

"I feel like… like it separates us. It's like you're putting me on some higher level, and that it means I'm better than you. And that's not true. That's not true at all, Kei," he finished vehemently, turning around to look at her and finding her expression surprisingly neutral.

"Is that any different than you looking at me like I'm some kind of angel because I try to make you feel special, or important, or relaxed, or even just _happy_?"

"Yes, it's completely different!"

"No, it's not, Fukou, it's not different!"

Hearing his name silenced any response he had to her argument. She swallowed, calming back down. She hadn't been yelling, she hadn't been crying, she had just been… upset. She composed her thoughts, and then looked up at him again. It felt odd not to be touching him as she spoke. When she had been with Miroku, she'd always been touching him, just in little ways, whenever they had conversations. There was something about the way they would touch each other when they were having arguments, the tiny, quiet ones like the one she was having with Fukou, which seemed to impart the verity of their words with reassuring little gestures.

It was rather hard to imagine that someone hated you when they were tenderly brushing your hair away from your face, or to argue against them when their fingers were pressed against your lips.

"It's the same thing, Fuu. Sometimes, it's almost like you seem to be in awe of me just because I know what to say or do to make you happy, or smile, or relaxed, or laugh or… or whatever, and it's not true! It's not any kind of magic, or anything else like that. It's because I know you. I _know_ you, Fuu. I've been by you since I was a little girl. I'm nothing special. I'm not some angel or some sorceress who's trying to take advantage of you… I'm just Kei." She looked away from him, taking a deep breath.

"And I am Fuu…Just… just Fuu," he answered. His wide green eyes were locked on her, on her face and her smile. She wondered if he had blinked at all from the moment she had called him Fukou. Slowly, he smiled back at her. He'd asked her when they started dating to call him by his nickname, but apparently she had forgotten. That was okay. He knew that there were things she asked him not to do and he'd forget once in awhile. "Just Fuu."

* * *

It wasn't until a few days later that she was able to get to the question she had meant to ask him that day. They were at school, just having finished the last tournament of that semester. Kei had gotten the bronze medal in the tournament, Fukou the gold. She was still smiling with pride for him, even when he was swarmed by his flock of female fans.

"Fuu-kun! That was amazing!"

"Fuu-kun! Where did you ever learn to fight like that?"

"Fuu-san! Would you mind if I took your picture and did an interview for the school newspaper?"

"Fuu-kun! Over here, Fuu-kun!"

By the time Kei had snapped out of her pride to be able to realize what the girls were shouting, the girls themselves were already being pushed aside by other girls. Kei was sad to see that she was able to assign names to the faces: Aya, whom Fuu had dated in his first year, for about two months; another girl who had fared somewhat worse and lasted for a month during winter break of second year… the list went on. Kei glanced at Fukou, and found he looked terrified when he was suddenly faced with this coalition of girls.

There was a tense moment of silence. Kei didn't know if the girls were ready to throw a kick at his genitals, or if they were going to start demanding when he was going to call them back.

Then Aya spoke up, sighing and sticking out her hand to congratulate, Fuu. "You're a dick," she said with a shrug, "but you're putting our school name out there and you _are_ a good fighter. But if you ever take advantage of another girl like you did us, Fukou Aisowosukatsu, we're going to find you, and we're going to hurt you as much as you did us. Bye now!" she finished, cheerfully waving and walking away.

Kei had never actually noticed how many girls he had gone through in his middle and high school years. She arched an eyebrow, looking at him suspiciously. She had, secretly, occasionally wondered if he was just playing with her, but in the end she knew she had to trust Fuu. She had no reason to distrust him, after all.

* * *

When all the girls had cleared out, and they were home at Kei's house, lounging in front of the television and tending to bruises that they never told anyone about, she asked the Question. "Fuu?" He looked up from a large yellow bruise on his arm to face her. "Why did you date so many different girls?"

He was silent for a moment, thinking. He knew the answer, and he had a lie ready in a heartbeat. But he was too surprised to say it. No one had ever asked him that question before… really, he was rather proud of her for being able to come out and ask him something that was obviously a difficult subject for her.

"Do you want the truth," he asked slowly, looking back down at the bruise, "or do you want the lie?"

Her answer surprised him, and the gentleness of her voice caught him off guard. "I want them both."

"All right. If I were to lie to you, I would tell you that I didn't know what I wanted in a girl, and that I went through them all to find the one girl I liked above all others… and she was you."

Kei grinned despite herself. It was the typical, sweet, perverted answer that she had been expecting. Even though she knew it was a lie, it warmed her, because it was familiar. What warmed her more was the fact that he was going to tell her the truth, even though she knew she wasn't going to like it.

"As for the truth… well, you know what my father was like. All I heard from him regarding women was that they were weak, and cried a lot, and that they were vapid, brainless, manipulative _things_ and that the only way to avoid becoming a woman's plaything was to grab power—all the power—as soon as possible. Otherwise, you would become victim to their tears, and be exploited by them, and lose all your masculinity… things like that. And I believed him.

"After you left, it was just my mom. That was the only female influence in my life, and Dad never picked on her like that. He never said: 'look, son, this is your mother, and she's weak'. He knew that it pissed me off when he tried to do shit like that. So he went after girls in general. And then when I did go to school and I saw girls… they were exactly what he told me that they were.

"The girls I dated were brainless, and spineless… and as much fun as they could be, kissing them and stuff, I hated them, because they weren't what I wanted. And then, all of a sudden, you came back, and you arrived like this… ball of energy. When you're happy, that's exactly what you're like, you know, even in my childhood memories. You're filled with this energy that I've never seen in anybody else before, and I love it… and the more I saw of that energy, the more I wanted it, the more I wanted to be able to hold it and say that's mine. Even when you're not energetic, I still wanted you. You just made me feel relaxed and accepted, just by being there, and I wanted that too. I wanted the fighter, the strength…

"I wanted everything I saw in you, because I didn't see any of the things that my father had talked about. If I did, if you did cry or you looked to me for comfort and I gave it to you, I didn't feel like I was less of a man for doing it. It felt… natural. Even if you were bawling your eyes out and you needed me to hold you, I would be happy, on some level. I'd be happy because you came to me… to maybe think that you needed me as much I needed you."

She was silent, staring at him as he looked down at his bruised arm. Kei was overwhelmed with what she had just heard. She was trying to sort through it, trying to make heads and tails of everything, but before she could, he said:

"I apologize if anything I've said made you mad. It wasn't meant to be an insult to you or anything…"

Kei had been about to tell him that she needed him back as much as he needed her, but his apology made her forget. Instead, she became concerned only with telling him, showing him, that his apology had been unwarranted. She leaned over, letting her fingertips brush his cheek. At her touch, he turned to face her. Kei kissed him softly, rather than saying anything.

It never occurred to her that maybe he needed to hear his words returned to him as much as she had needed to hear them in the first place.

* * *

"Nothing I do seems to be able to get to him," Ikigaru complained, leaning her cheek in her hand. Even when she was mad, she was beautiful, the sneering curve of her lips still becoming. She was lounging on a bed, running her unclothed knee against the smooth fabric. His hand reached out to gently stroke her hair and she curled around his muscular body, laying her head against his frame and slowly relaxing. "I don't understand it…"

Neji looked down at her thoughtfully. "What exactly have you been trying?"

"Complimenting him," Ikigaru answered, staring up at her friend. Her wide eyes, with their unending color and the long lashes, seemed innocent, completely detached from the frustration in her voice. "Touching him in little ways, like brushing the back of his hand when I walk by him. I try to make myself available for him." She grinned and stood up, kneeling beside Neji on his bed. She lowered her lashes slightly, her deep eyes focused solely on him. "And of course I gaze at him with open desire and need… only to find that he _ignores_ me completely and instead he puts all of his attention to that little... that _little_ she-male…"

Neji was only slightly surprised to actually hear a little growl come from Ikigaru when she thought of Kei. The hand laying on her back pressed a little harder, reminding her who she was calling names. "It's not Kei's fault. She's so good and honest and open, that Fuu is called to her, like… like a magnet. He's infatuated by her, because she so completely similar and dissimilar at the same time."

"And if they are so similar and attracted to each other, then why are you trying to break them apart?" Ikigaru demanded, bitter that she couldn't insult Kei the way she wanted to because of Neji's protectiveness.

"Because as much as he may like her and may be drawn to her, I felt what he felt first. I've liked Kei since I met her. It's not fair that he…"

"But then she _chose_ him over you, Neji-_kun_," Ikigaru interrupted harshly, hissing with each stressed syllable. "Are you sure we shouldn't try to accept their decisions, regardless of our own feelings?"

"I won't see her violated by him!" Neji sharply answered, his voice rising slowly. "Fuu goes through girls like… like a sick man goes through Kleenex! When he's done with them, they are never the same! I don't want to see Kei be abused by his perversion and then left without him!" He slid off the bed and walked away, suddenly very emotionally tired. "Now leave me alone… I don't want to talk about it anymore."

Ikigaru was left alone, reclining on the bed, her pretty face finally starting to look sour. 'You go through girls just as badly,' she thought, her thoughts venomous. 'Why is this one girl different? You don't want her to be near Fukou incase he pollutes her, but I'm expendable, is that it, Neji? Well, screw you two. Two can play this came, you know. I'll see to it that I _will_ have Fukou, and all you'll be left with is the check.'

* * *

To still be continued... whenever I have net access again.


	22. Bullet with Butterfly Wings

AN: Woot! I am updating again! Sadly, there's no sign of the disk I saved Nihil Credo on, so no updates for that... until next weekend when I visit North Bay and can update from my computer instead of my boyfriend's! Three cheers! And fpr the record... this chapter may seem pointless, it is lacking on the fluff... but two of my favourite secondary characters make an appearance. For all those wondering who this "Hatsuhana" is... it's a secret. At least until chapter 8 (or something) of Duty and Honor! Have I told you I love reoccuring characters?

Ebony-chan: Yes, that song, and no, I won't have him make threats. Personally, I think they always make people look psychotic. My characters end up being insane enough without holdings knives to their throats all for unrequitered love.

A staggering number of you admitted (and I loose the term loosely) to not liking Neji and Ikigaru. I like Neji... but for those of you who want to know my own feelings towards Ikigaru, go and look up the word (not a name) on a Japanese-English server. it means 'feigns intelligence' or something. (I apologize for not recalling the correct translation, but hey, it _was_ several _months_ ago!)

For those of you like Iggy or Zionne who like angst... there will be some coming up in the next few chapters. As well as a reappearance from Kouga!

Becca: Well... after this, I have NC to finish, and DH to write (though that is Rin and Sesshy). I do also want to do some one shots, both of trhe AU genre, and to the three movies. Grr, dubbing on the second movie. (_breaks down into tears from the translations of the dubbing_) Gimme one month with Aamalie on the net and I'll probably have something good!

DeadTired: The emails make my inbox feel loved.

Kitten Fang: I sincerely hope that what I have planned for Neji will make up for everything he's done.

God... my eyes hurt from the computer radiation at this point. Thank you for the great reviews! I can't beleive so many of you have found your way to this story. Where did you all come from? O.o Oh well. Glad you're here, no matter what road you took to get here. Sit back, and relax. There are 26 chapters in total. Only four more to fo after this... and yet I still have the audacity to throw another wrench into the mix!

By the by, this chapter's theme song is "Bullet with Butterfly Wings" by the Smashing Pumpkins.

* * *

Chapter Twenty-Two:

Bullet with Butterfly Wings

"How's it going?" 

Kei jumped at the sound of Kagome's voice. Not only was it unexpected, but it had also been so long since she had heard it that it took her a moment to realize it was a friendly voice. Kei blushed and she scooted over on the seat she had, letting Kagome sit down next to her and watch Fukou train the younger kids. She smiled over him proudly, loving the way that he was laughing and smiling with the children. They were unwinding from the lesson, all six kids in the class fighting playfully against Fukou.

"It's going okay… don't you love watching him do this? I can't believe how quickly and easily he's able to avoid them. It's like black lightning."

"Fuu is pretty amazing…" Kagome agreed, watching him.

"How is the feudal era going?" Kei inquired, suddenly wishing that she hadn't. She hadn't expected Kagome's face to fall so suddenly, and though she knew that it was five hundred years ago, she feared for them. "Is everything okay? No one's hurt or anything, or they? Is it Arashi? Miroku? Kari? Not Shippo…" Her voice fell when Kagome's blue eyes turned on her, and she realized who Kagome was worried about. "Sango…"

Kagome shook her head. "Miroku and you… Sango," she corrected with a blush, "forced us to come back for our Christmas with my family, and to see Kaede again. Then we're going back…"

"Let's just not talk about it. This is supposed to be a happy time of year. Besides, you know what happens to me, Kagome. She dies, and then we'll be reincarnated, and I'll meet Miroku's reincarnation and everything will work out for the best." She didn't mean to, but she sounded a little forlorn.

"Are you sure that everything is okay?"Kagome asked, sounding concerned for Kei.

Kei smiled at Kagome, nodding. "I am. I'm sad, Kagome-chan, that I don't have Miroku anymore, but I'm not Sango. If I had Miroku, he might not be exactly what I need, because I'm not the same person."

"That's very wise of you to realize," Kagome said, nodding in agreement. She glanced back up at Fuu, who was biding his students goodbye, still unaware that Kagome and Inuyasha hadreturned from the Feudal Era. "Now that you feel that way, are you still going to try and make Fuu feel at his ease with the memories trying to resurface in his mind? Are you still going to try and…"

"I was thinking about that too," she replied, cutting off the rest of Kagome's questions. "He's not remembering Miroku for some reason. If that's what's best for him, then who am I to say otherwise? I don't think I need to wake up Miroku. In fact, I think that might be dangerous. But it's not healthy for him to be so sullen all the time. We need to act like kids sometimes, everyone does. You do, with Inuyasha. You two always have play fights and then make up afterwards, just like you did when you were fifteen. That's what I need to do: make him laugh and smile…"

"And how are you planning on doing that?"

Kei stood up, dusting off her pants before smiling at Kagome. "The same way I do everything else. I fight for it." She winked at Kagome, and then whistled for Fuu. The tall boy turned around, his smile broadening when he saw who was approaching him.

"Ah, Kei," he purred draping his arms around her and hugging her. His chin nuzzled her dark hair as they hugged in greeting. His deep voice was happy. "I think I really do like teaching little kids. I've decided, Kei. I want a whole litter of them. I want a pack of kids. Ten, maybe twenty…"

"Fuu…" she growled, her body tensing up.

"They don't all have to be yours," he protested, lifting his chin and staring off into the distance. "We can adopt, maybe. After all, I want to enjoy my time with you, and if you had ten or twenty kids, well then, you'd be in the hospital so often, I wouldn't get to ever see you, now would I?"

She didn't know what it was about the shrine. They just felt better at the shrine, by the Goshinboku. Kei felt like her old self: not just Sango, but like she had when she was a little girl. Like magic was constantly in the air, and anything was possible. Like a demon was sleeping inside the tree, like every falling blossom could be a snowflake, she just felt wonderful, and happy. And so did Fuu. Except that when he became happy, it always seemed to end up with him trying to get into her pants.

"Fuu, get your hand off my butt before I remove your hand from your arm," she warned, though a grin threatened her face. When he didn't remove his hand, she grabbed him and threw him over her shoulder. He groaned when he hit the ground, and she suddenly tackled him, straddling his waist and pinning him to the ground. Her hands already began to peel at his gi, trying to get at his skin. "You pervert," she growled.

"Look whose talking! At least I don't try stripping you in public," he laughed. He wasn't even putting up any resistance. He leaned his hands behind his head, looking up at her.

"Well, I can't very well tickle you through your clothes, now can I?"

"Ti… tickle me?"

"Precisely."

"Kei… Kei… I really think you should rethink that…" he said, beginning to squirm as he tried to get away from her. It was too late. She had wrestled his gi up and was tickling him so hard, he thought he was going to pee himself.

Even Kagome laughed from the sidelines, forgetting how worried she had been about Sango. Fuu's laughter was beautiful, and contagious. It sounded just like Miroku's laughter. And she needed to hear the sounds of Miroku laughing more than anything at that moment.

* * *

The next time that Kei saw Kagome again, she reported that Sango had passed on. Kei didn't know how to take her own death. How was one supposed to react when they learned they had died five hundred years ago? It seemed obvious. Of course she died five hundred years ago. If she hadn't died, then why would she be there, reincarnated? Everyone dies… 

But she was worried for Miroku. She was very worried, wondering what was going on in Miroku's life now that she wasn't there. Kagome told her that Miroku seemed normal. He was trying to get into his work more, but she still wondered.

She was so preoccupied with wondering what happened after her death that would have helped to turn Miroku's spirit into the sour thing she had seen when she was a little girl that even Fukou noticed. More than once, he asked her what was going on in her mind that made her seem so distracted on their dates, but she always said it was something related to school.

It was somewhat true. When she wasn't wondering what was going on in the Feudal Era, she was very distracted with school. Entrance exams were approaching faster than anyone had ever expected, and she was constantly questioning herself: did she make the right choice in school? What if she didn't like the career she had chosen? What if she couldn't find a job? Finally, when she had calmed herself down, she realized that she had never spoken about university with Fuu, and her biggest worry became: what if I never see him again?

They had agreed, near the beginning of the year, not to talk about it. Competition was so stiff to get into schools that they had agreed not to talk about what program they were going into, or where. That way, they wouldn't worry about competing against one another. Everyone in the group had decided to do it, but Kei felt like she needed to ask. She felt as if knowing where Fuu was going was vital.

She brought it up next time they were out on a date. They were once again curled up on Fuu's couch, a movie playing. Hanging out like friends, doing normal teenager things, that was what their dates were. Kei liked them. She didn't want to be paraded around the movie thatersor restaurants. She wanted simple, comfortable things: a movie and a cup of ramen with some ice scream for desert. She wanted to wear her sweatpants and be comfortable, and that was Fuu offered her.

Which was why she hated ruining what was turning out to be such a great date. She looked at Fukou, who was laying beside her, using her breasts as a pillow. Kei didn't mind at all. She loved holding him, letting her head relax against his and getting to hold him close, enjoying the way their legs intertwined.

"Fuu?"

"Yeah?"

"Where are you going to University?"

"I thought we had agreed not to talk about that." He sounded confused.

"I know we did, but… I keep on worrying what will happen if we're going away from each other… I don't think I could do it again, in all honesty. I like having you near me. I like knowing there's a friendly face on campus, in my class, a study partner, and someone to fight with when the stress of mid terms become too much. I'm not asking either of us to change our choices, it's just that it would make me feel a whole lot better."

He suddenly sat up. Her body was cold where he had laid. "I really don't want to talk about it…"

"Please?" she asked, leaning up. He turned to look at her, seeing the concern and fear flicking in the depth of her grey eyes. He tenderly ran a finger down her cheek, and he gave in.

"I don't think I'm going to be able to go to university this year," he admitted. To her credit, Kei didn't so much as bat an eyelash at this news. Instead, she let him finish completely. "Even with how much I'm working, it isn't enough to help pay for this house, my schooling, martial arts, and to save up money for university. So I don't think I'll be going anywhere."

"If you did," she asked slowly, "where would you want to go?"

"Tokyo U, I suppose."

She reached out and took his hand, laying it against her cheek. Her voice was pleading. "Are you at least still going to try and take the entrance exams?" he didn't answer her, and she pressed on. "Please, at least take the entrance exams, Fuu. You don't have to give them your response right away. You can wait. Just take the exams. You're smart, Fuu! You might be able to at least get a scholarship or something! In fact, there's no doubt in my mind that you'll get the highest scholarship available. And you have the summer to get a job before school starts again. Besides, if we both get in, we'll be able to keep studying together, and nothing can hold us back then. And they have…"

"Kei…"

"…financial services, so…"

"Kei…"

"…you can apply for bursaries and…"

"Kei!"

"What?"

She was taken aback when he suddenly reached out and grabbed her, his hand clamping around the back of her head and bringing her forward as he pressed his lips against hers. She felt his desperation in that kiss, and it silenced her mind. His lips slowly softened, and his hands held her more preciously, like a treasure. She loved it when he held her like she was spun glass. Her heart pounded in her chest.

"I'll take the entrance exam," he promised her. She could feel his lips as he spoke. Then his lips descended on hers again, and Kei kissed him back with just as much devouring need.

* * *

Kei didn't think about university again until she was in the change room after a tournament. She was sore, and changing slowly. Her whole arm ached from a throw she had improperly blocked. She had still managed to win the fight, though, and secured another bronze medal for the team. She had just finished pulling on her shirt when someone knocked on the door. 

"Come on in," she hollered, all but climbing into her locker to try and find her running shoes. She gasped when she withdrew her head and found a strange man standing in the entrance of the girl's locker room. Her grey eyes darted around, looking for a weapon. Seeing none, she resorted to using her hands and feet, as sore and tired as they were.

All Kei could think about were movies where people had been followed by stalkers and trapped in dark rooms…

"You seem surprised to see me here," the man chuckled. He certainly didn't sound like a stalker. He had a nice, crisp voice. He also sounded old and well-educated, though he looked like a university student. He even dressed like a university student, wearing normal clothes, but he carried with him an expensive looking briefcase.

"I thought you were Fuu," she stammered, her heart slowing down. She was just glad she was fully dressed! Kei slammed her locker shut as the man rubbed his chin, trying to remember why the name sounded so familiar.

"Oh, oh yes. Aisowosukatsu Fukou. Student number 919316. The boy who won the gold at this little sports meet. He certainly was a good fighter. You must have been holding back," he said, sliding his briefcase unto a table and opening it.

Kei shook her head, slipping on one of her shoes and doing it up quickly. "No, he's always been better than I have. Since, high school, anyway. I kicked his butt when…" She coughed, suddenly embarrassed about using such a boy-like language in front of this man. "I always bested him when I was little, but then he received training and I didn't. He continued to learn and excel, while I was only able to retain what I remembered the most. You still haven't introduced yourself."

"Oh, pardon me." The man dusted off his hand and offered it to her, smiling. "My name, Konseki-san, is Hatsuhana."

She felt a tingle go through her hand when she touched him. Kei's grey eyes were neutral, cool and removed as she studied his face. He looked human enough: dark hair swept to the side, brown eyes, pleasant features… but she could tell. He was a demon, through and through. Kei said as much, taking him by surprise.

"I see that my employer was correct," he chuckled, reaching into his briefcase and removing a stack of papers.

"Employer?"

"Yes, Kei. You see, my employer is someone I believe you know. And since you recognize me as a demon, I assume it's because your memories have reawakened. He sent me here to offer you a chance of a lifetime. My employer has heard of you and of your victories outside of Nippon in the field of martial arts. He has also heard that you are planning to go to Tokyo University. My employer wants to make sure that you get in said university, and that you fight for it, on their team, and that you win."

Hatsuhanapassed Kei a stack of papers. Glancing it, saw that the language was far too archaic and judicial for her to comprehend it. What she did understand was the creepy feeling worming up and down her spine and making her hair stand on end. She was curious as to who the employer was, butHatsuhana was already continuing.

"If you accept his offer, and you fight and win for Tokyo University, he will pay all of your tuition, every year that you continue to fight. He recognizes that otherwise, you might need to take some kind of a job to pay for your education during the school year. He wants you to solely concentrate on your education, and on fighting. Should you, at any point, quit the team or loose a season, it will be up to you to pay whatever of your tuition remains."

Her nose scrunched as she tried to sort through this overload of information. "So, what you're saying is that so long as I fight and win, I can get a free education."Hatsuhana nodded. She put the papers down on the bench beside her and stood up, crossing her arms. "Why me, sir? I just got the bronze medal. There are many other fighters here who are better than me, and considering going to Tokyo U, like Fukou. Why me and not him?"

"You have gone to championships, and he hasn't. While his fight was impressive, I was sent here for you, Ms. Konseki. Your name carries weight and authority. His does not, unfortunately."

The tingling feeling of suspicion refused to leave, and quickly got the better of her. She stepped a little closer to Hatsuhana, arching an eyebrow, her lips set into a suspicious line. "Just who _is_ your employer, Mr. Hatsuhana?"

The young man looked a little nervous, much to his credit. He knew when to be afraid. Though a young adult herself and shorter, Kei could put on a frightening aura at times, and this one was subconsciously meant to defend herself.

"My… my employer often changes his name, due to his long lifespan…"

"Your employer is a demon then?"

"Ye… yes." He straightened, backing up, coughing into his hand, and composing himself. He cursed her curiosity and hisinability toresist a pretty human girl's face. It was his biggest downfall. Hisvoice was serious and his gaze unblinking as he looked down at Kei."The name that you would have known him as is Sesshomaru."

Kei felt cold. Then she suddenly laughed. "Seshsomaru? Sessh… oh." Her laughter died off. "You're being serious. Why does Sesshomaru want to pay for my education?"

"Well, you see, Ms. Konseki, that Sesshomaru has risen to a position of great power. He has money to expend, as do many of his companions. They have also run out of new ways to entertain themselves after more than seven hundred years of life…"

"What you're saying is that Sesshomaru gambles now, and he wants to know that he has me to be able to bet on," she said, sounding very against the idea.

Hatsuhanashrugged. "Almost. Not quite. Think of it as more like a sponsorship…"

"Depending on your veiws, it could just as easily sound like prostitution," she snapped back at him. She could detect a spark of appreciation for her comment in his gaze, and she eased off on her aggressiveness. They always said don't shoot the messenger. "That still doesn't explain why he's come to me. I'm not the best. Shouldn't he be sponsoring someone he knows will win?"He was quiet. She picked up the papers and handed them back to him, scooping up her duffel bag in the other hand. "I don't have to sign these immediately, do I?" He shook his head no. "Fine then. I'll contemplate signing them after you tell me why he's singling me out like this."

She made it to the door of the girl's locker room before he answered her. "He's seen you fight. He saw you first fight in Greece. He knew who you were then. You fight exactly like her, you know. Don't forget, he's seen her fight. He's seen Sango's daughter fight…"

"Wait. He saw Arashi fight? When? Where?" She suddenly felt overcome by protection for the little girl. Logically, she knew that Arashi was dead. Humans didn't live five hundred years. But Arashi was _her_ daughter. Her voice was low and dangerous. "Damn it. If Sesshomaru ever touched one strand of hair on my daughter's head, if he even _looked_ at her the wrong way, I swear to God that I'm going to find him and kill him."

"Relax, Konseki-san. Your daughter lived well into her life. Sesshomaru never hurt her. You also fight like _him_ you know. Inuyasha. You fight exactly like the only two people who have only ever managed to hurt Sesshomaru-sama physically with a sword."

Just as she had felt protectiveness for Arashi, now she felt pride. "She was able to hurt Sesshomaru?" She grinned, looking away from Hatsuhana. "Way to go Arashi…"

"Sesshomaru-sama feels if there is one person who will be able to contend with all the pressures of a university life and fight battles, it will be you, Konseki-san." The man packed up his briefcase again. "Besides, most of my employer's business companions are males. That a female who is as short and tiny as you would be able to beat their chosen warriors would make his victories doubly entertaining."

She smiled a little despite herself. "Has Sesshomaru seen Fukou fight?" she inquired.Hatsuhana shook his head no. "Very well. Before I sign that agreement you have, I want Sesshomaru to come to our next tournament and see Fuu fight. If he still wants me after he's seen what Fuu can do, I will sign. But not until he comes and sees Fuu fight." She paused, thinking. "Is there anyway that I can get in contact with him?"

"Unfortunately, no. But this is my card. You can contact me at any time."

Some part of Kei, after making that promise, felt as if she was selling herself out. But it was just a sponsorship. What difference was there in taking the agreement versus taking a scholarship? Scholarships for clubs like baseball or martial arts held exactly the same thing: instead of paying, you had to work for your tuition, and that work was training and battling other teams or people to win. Winning earned your tuition.

But some part of her wondered if Sango would have taken it… after all, her "sponsor" was Sesshomaru…

And she wondered if Kagome and Inuyasha knew about Sesshomaru…


	23. Stupid

_Author's Notes_:

This baby is getting so old so quickly, it truly makes me sad! I'm sorry that I didn't update last weekend as I thought I would. Instead I somehow got fragged into three games of Dungeons and Dragons with my boyfriend and one of my closest friends. It was worth it though. Not only did I get to gourth level, I got to hang out with the people I love, and apparently I might be able to ride my wolf-lizard... which looks like a velociraptor. The joys of geekdom!

Squee! I couldn't wait to get to this chapter though! I think that this is by far one of my favourites, because I was suddenly struck with the inspiration to explain more of Sango's soul and thoughts, personality, etc. No, not Kei. The real, original _Sango_. So expect lots of flashbacks! Very quickly now, running through responses so that I can have the joys of a last minute edit!

Sango the wind warrior: I never wrote what Miroku went through for a reason. I can't. I don't do tragedy well. I'll leave that up to people who can write personal angst as opposed to throwing a kink in the relationship.

Hououza: In all honesty, Sesshy showing up means very little. I simply realized that I had ignored him for two whole stories and decided to acknowledge his existence.

Iggy: I love you. Don't worry.

Bonzo: (_blinks_) You make a very good point. A _very_ good point... While it's probably too late to throw that in there, I shall _have_ to keep it in mind for the next story. After all, the very first Inuyasha movie acknowledged demons from China...

Starzki: Arg! It's killing me that I can't find time to be able to write that scene! I really, really, want to wriyte Arashi and Sesshy fighting! ARGGGGGGG! (_tears hair out and goes insane_)

moonyme: No, I had physically lost the disk. As in it was no longer in my possession and lost somewhere within the bowels of my desk.

DeadTired: I think that Kei's protective streak is probably my favourite thing about her personality. She's protective of everyone, even if she has no reason to be so or even if logically (in the case of Arashi) theyy're dead and there's nothing she can do. (Don't panic for all those reading this, I'm not killing off Arashi in some horribly brutal fashion, just pointing out that Arashi, like the original Sango and Miroku, can't live five hundred years.)

MagCat: Sorry, Rin won't be getting reincarnated. While I understand that within Buddhism, yes, every soul gets reincarnated in some fashion until they have reached enlightenment, I figure someone has to be lucky enough to get a peaceful end.

my oboe ate my homework: Don't worry about university. Que sera, sera, as they say. There are three basic rules to surviving university. These are: 1) Don't party at night when you have an 8:30 am class. Some teachers still take attendance, so not only are you missing marks, you could also be missing vital clues to what is on your next test. 2) Don't fall in love. Souns silly, but the last thing you want is to spend all your time meant for homework wollowing in self pity because your boyfriend isn't there. And number three: learn time managament. What so many people fail to forget is that reading week is _not_ meant for spring break in Floriday or Europe. It's meant to get that essay done that you really should have started three weeks ago when it was first assigned. So, given the fact that you can balance learning a musical instrument and writing fanfics, it looks like you;'ll be fine. (_hugs_)

Cabbage Rose: I checked out your profile, and it turned up fine.

Quynh: I was wondering what was going on when I opened my inbox and found 22 reviews in a row. You made my inbox feel very not lonely. So thank you.

Fireblade: Temporary moment of insanity. I swear!

Shutting up now. Enjoy chapter twenty-three, folks! And by the way, this chapter's theme song is 'Stupid' by Sarah McLaughlin, because of the lines: "How stupid could I be? A simpleton could see/That you're no good for me. But you're the only one I see."

Note: _kohai_ is the opposite of _sempai_. Rather than being a term of respect for someone older or wiser or higher ranking than you, it's derogatory as it acknowledges that you are speaking to someone lesser than yourself (or so tokyopop tells me).

* * *

Chapter Twenty Three: 

Stupid

A week later, Kei was coming out of the change rooms for a practice in time to see Ikigaru check out Fuu from behind for the third time in the last half hour. Kei's teeth hurt as they grinded against each other. Enough, she decided, was enough. She motioned for one of the other boys to come over.

"Go and stall Miyaki-sensei," she told him. "Bring Fuu with you." Her knuckles cracked. "I want to have a little chat with Ikigaru-chan."

The other boy nodded and ran off. Kei waited, pacing back and forth behind the bleachers, stretching in between pacing. She didn't know what her teammate said to Fukou to make him go with him, but it worked. As soon as they were out of ear shot, she very calmly walked up to Ikigaru.

Kei wasn't able to believe what she was about to do. Ikigaru had been trained since childhood, and she was seriously going to try and pick a fight with her? She was going to get herself killed!

'But if it's for Fukou, I don't care. I don't care if she humiliates me in front of my friends and breaks all my fingers. So long as she doesn't continue to lust after Fuu like he was a piece of meat, I don't care what happens to me.'

Her whole body was shaking. Her hands felt clammy. She should have rubbed some chalk on them to keep them from getting sweaty. Her jaw ached. She actually felt scared; _scared!_ Her whole body was tensed, liable to freeze up at any moment, yet somehow she was able to continue walking.

"Ikigaru."

The other girl turned around, and Kei straightened, a smile tugging at her lips. When Ikigaru had turned around, Kei had been scowling at her, her whole body giving off signs of uncontrolled anger, every ounce of it directed at Ikigaru. For all her blonde moments, Ikigaru wasn't stupid. She knew that Kei was there after _her_, and for a brief moment when she had turned around, she had been scared.

If she had any logic in her mind, she would have remained clear-headed and easygoing. That would have unsettled Kei, because Kei would have known she couldn't just flex her arm and bluff her away.Kei wouldhave thought she'd have to fight Ikigaru, if the other girl had stayed calm and in-control of herself. Instead, she saw who was coming after her, and for a brief moment, she had expressed fear. Ikigaru had a weakness, and it was her fear of Kei, meaning that Kei had an upperhand. She wasn't scared of Ikigaru, not anymore. All of her fear evaporated, leaving behind cold, hard anger.

Hatsuhanahad been right. Kei only occasionally won gold medals. She lost quite often, her technique was bad, and she wasn't as limber as she wanted, but her name, her face, carried weight and respect. She had potential, which scared people. Unlike someone who was at the height of her training, Kei was still learning, and because of it, she was unpredictable. No one knew what exactly Kei was capable of, not even Kei herself.

Ikigaru was actually frightened of her.

Kei smiled, telling herself she could go on. She had the upper hand in this fight. Her smile was not all that nice. "You know that Fuu-sama and I are dating, don't you, Ikigaru-chan?"

"Yes, Kei-_koha_i," Ikigaru replied with just as much venomous kindness.

"Great. For a second there, I thought nothing could get past your skull. I mean, I've seen you take hits that would have knocked me out, so I'm glad that there's finally a show of life from your previously non-existent brain." Her voice was so sweet Kei felt like she was going to be sick to her stomach. "Seeing as how you know that we're dating, please stop flirting with my boyfriend, and checking him out."

"Pardon me," she interrupted, "but even if he's your boyfriend, I don't see anything wrong with me checking him out. He's a very attractive young man, and I can't help it."

"You better _start _helping it," Kei growled.

"What's the matter, Konseki-kohai?" Ikigaru's smirk was so irritating Kei wanted to scratch it off her painted face. "Afraid that I might take him from you?"

"Not really, Ikigaru. He likes his women with brains, after all." Slowly, Kei stepped forward, intruding on Ikigaru's personal grounds. "Let me spell it out for you, Garu, hon. There's nothing wrong with a girl looking at my boyfriend, but when she starts drooling over him like a piece of meat, and eyeing him at every opportunity, and throwing himself at him… it's not just that you're _thinking_ about a man who is unavailable, _lusting_ over a man who is unavailable. You're making _my_ boyfriend, someone I love and respect, look like your chew toy. And by flaunting yourself at him, you're making our whole sex look like sluts. If I see you looking at Fuu like that again rather than like the decent human being he is, I'm going to punch you so hard that you won't be able to see out of your eyes for at least a week. Do I make my meaning clear?"

Ikigaru was shocked, staring at Kei wide eyed and opened mouth.

Kei giggled, mocking Ikigaru an inch more. "I'm glad we understand each other, then. Have fun at practice today!" She wriggled her fingers at Ikigaru in parting, and then turned and walked away.

The younger girl humphed. She crossed her arms and lowered her chin, the very signs of bitter defeat, but her voice was crisp. "At least I have something to flaunt."

She didn't mean to stop, she really didn't, but she did. Ikigaru had struck upon the one thing in which Kei had no confidence. Kei was very nervous about her looks. She felt like a stocky, shapeless dwarf compared to people like Ikigaru. As a result, she became defensive. Her muscles tightened and she got ready to defend herself, physically, if needed.

"I understand that you and Fuu-sama study together," Ikigaru taunted loudly, slowly approaching Kei. Like Kei earlier, Ikigaru had learned Kei's weakness and was exploiting it in a calculating voice. "That's kind of cute, but it's a bad sign. People who really like each other, who are attracted to each other, they at least go out to the movies or hold hands or something. You two going on study dates. You know why, don't you? He's just using you for your brains. Once he gets into university, or he has a well-paying job, he'll dump you. I mean, isn't it obvious, Kei? How could he like someone like you? You're too butch to be a real girl, you don't have any feminine curves at all…

"I bet you that he has to force himself to kiss you," she continued. "I bet you that when he is kissing you, he's thinking of someone voluptuous and beautiful and feminine…"

In her pain, Kei was almost laughing out of bitter pain. 'Don't people ever think of anything else to tease me about? God, even when I was Sango, it was still 'you're so unfeminine'… can't anyone think of anything new anymore?'

"I know that when I kiss Neji, I'm thinking of Fukou…"

Kei snapped. It wasn't the comments about her looks, or the ridiculous idea of Fuu using her for her mind, but something else entirely. Kei wasn't sure what it was, but she narrowed it down to one of two things. It was either that now Ikigaru wasn't just attacking Fukou, but Neji as well as she all but admitted that she was using Neji and wishing it was Fuu, which Kei found not just disgusting, but plain immoral…

Or else it had been hearing Fukou's name fall from her lips.

No one called him that. No one.

"Damn it," she said in her husky voice, her heart pounding wildly. Kei slowly lifted her head and turned on the balls of her feet. Her grey eyes were wild. "I'm not about to hear you call Fuu-sama by that name. No one calls him that. He hates it. I hate it. He's not…"

Without warning, Ikigaru threw the first punch. Her fist connected with Kei's temple, and the smaller girl fell to the dusty ground. Her head spun as the world rushed up at her. Vaguely, she could hear the friends she had made on the team calling foul, and calling Ikigaru names. Kei was frightened.

That blow had connected with her _temple_. If struck the correct way, it could cause serious injuries: head trauma, temporary blindness, unconsciousness… Kei wondered why no textbook discussing anatomy or martial arts had bothered to mention pain. It felt like a knife was digging into her head.

Her eyes shut, she tried to pick herself off of the ground, but Ikigaru's foot connected with her ribs. Kei rolled away, clutching her stomach. Her flesh was tender where she had been kicked. It was another strike which could end in severe trauma: broken ribs, a punctured lung, punctured kidneys or liver… who knew where shards of broken bone could fly within a human body and cause hemorrhaging.

Kei's thoughts were interrupted when a foot landed on the back of her head. Dirt stung her eyes. Tears ran down her nose, soaking into the dusty ground. Hot liquid ran from her nose. She couldn't open her mouth, knowing that of she did, she'd just get a lungful of dirt. Then she would go into a coughing spasm, trying to get rid of the dirt particles and take in oxygen and fresh air. She'd only inhale more dirt.

She was suffocating.

On the sidelines, her teammates watched the fight, shocked and dismayed. None of them moved to help Kei.

They were too shocked.

Kei had been untouchable. She had never gotten choked out before. She always tapped out when she knew the situation was hopeless, before she could lose consciousness. She always joked that her brain cells were too valuable to loose in a fight. They had never seen her like this before, her arms holding her ribs, her face in the dirt, her whole body motionless.

And they had never seen Ikigaru with her foot on someone's head, suffocating them.

"Kei…"

"Someone should do something."

"Like what?"

"Go get Fuu! He's the best out of all of us. He should be able to handle her!"

"Right!" Someone ran off to get Fuu.

"The rest of should tackle her, all as one! She can't possibly fight off all of us! Come on, guys! This is totally dishonorable! We need to do something!"

'This can't be happening!' Kei's whole mind was panicked. Her body was as still as a corpse. Her worst nightmare was coming true. Everything was pitch black. All she could smell was dirt and blood. Her blood. She couldn't breathe. It hurt to move her chest. Her tongue was gritty, making her want to almost gag.

'It's just like… it's just like before…' Tears stung her eyes. 'Kohaku… my little baby brother… I won't get to hold you again. I won't get to tell you that it's okay. I forgive you. Daddy will forgive you. We'll all forgive you. Don't worry, little Kohaku…'

The smell of her blood was everywhere. She tried to breathe, and choked.

'But if I was willing to die back then to be with Kohaku-kun, then… then what made me change my mind? What made Sango change her mind when she was ready to accept death? Did she feel pain and know that she was still alive? Did she want to breathe and just claw her way out of that grave for some fresh air? What… Momma. She did it for Momma….

"_Are you giving up so easily, Sango?"_

_"No, Momma!" I said to her earnestly, picking myself back up. Myarms burned, but I struggled to lift up that katana. I grunted with the effort. I couldn't pick it up yet. My arms dropped down again, and this time, I fell over from exhaustion. I wiped my forehead. I felt icky, and tired. "I don't think I'm ready yet, Momma. It's too big."_

_My mother was beautiful. She had deep black hair, framed by her strands of her hair she could never tame, and lilies from our garden out front. I swear they looked gold in her hair. Her warm brown eyes were oddly stern though, and she held out her arms to me. I nervously walked over to her, not because I was sore, but because I was worried about ruining her pretty clothes._

_My mother held me close, and she touched her swelling stomach. Smiling, she took my hand and pressed it against her stomach. I felt a ridge there, and I asked her what it was._

_"That's either going to be your little sister or brother. Boy or girl, they are a kicker right now. If you keep your hand their long enough, you can feel them kick. As a big sister, Sango, it will be your duty to watch over your little sibling. You have to protect them, and watch over them, understand?" I nodded, and my mother arched a slim eyebrow, her gaze flickering to the katana behind me. "Now, how are you going to keep them safe if you can't even pick up a sword?"_

'How can I defend Fuu-sama's honor if I can't defend myself? Am I about to let some gaudy slut beat me like this? Am I seriously going to let her suffocate me or wait for Fuu-sama to come save me? Hell no! Hell no, no, no!' She grinned. She didn't care, suddenly, about the gritty texture of the dirt being kicked into her face at the moment. She didn't care about the blood from her bloody nose. She didn't care about her ribs, or her throbbing head.

She felt suddenly… free; freer than ever before.

Before she had felt like one person, and had been incomplete. Then she had been two people: Sango and Kei, two separate people in one body, one active and one passive… and somehow, they had mixed. It didn't matter that Sango had lived five hundred years ago. She was alive in Kei. She had helped to make Kei into who she was. She was a part of her very _soul_. They weren't two people, they weren't even one person. They were one _soul_, one _essence_, and she had stared down ferocious dogs, and demons, and death in the face, and she was _not_ going to let some shallow, vain, stupid girl embarrass her like this!

Her hand shot out from under her body, snapping into Ikigaru's knee. Pain laced up and down Ikigaru's knee from the pressure point Kei had used, causing her to waver. Her foot lifted, and Kei rolled. She spun around on the ground, her legs wrapping around Ikigaru's body and helping her to the ground. With a flash, she was straddling Ikigaru, and managed to get a punch in before Ikigaru pushed her away.

Rolling as she hit the ground, Ikigaru pounced Kei, but the smaller girl was waiting. She helped Ikigaru over her head with her feet before jumping back up. She jumped over a kick aimed at her ankles, and dove in for the kill. She grabbed the leg that was coming around and sat on the knee. Ikigaru tried to twist out from under Kei, but Kei was rooted firmly to the ground. She also had in her hand Ikigaru's pinky toe, which she slowly began to twist.

_"Miroku!__ No fair! Toe locks are cheating!" I cried, wriggling under him. No wonder he went for the toe-lock. It pinched, but it wasn't painful, and out of the fear of being tickled, I had a tendency of squirming under him._

_That pervert._

_"All's fair in love and war, Sango my love. Besides, a wise man once said that it is often the smallest thing, easily overlooked, which can cause the greatest pain, or even a man's downfall. Just as a little subtlety can take down a whole castle, so too can a little misdirection take down a grown man, or in this case, a grown demon slayer."_

_"Who in the world said that, Miroku?"_

_"Why… I believe I just did."_

_"…Since when have YOU been considered a wise man?"_

"Do you want to know what the difference is between us?" she asked, looking over her shoulder to see Ikigaru worm around in pain. "Despite the fact that I have less training than you, I know enough not to try to make my opponents lose consciousness, when there are so many other ways to stop somebody without causing them head trauma. I have control of my emotions."

"You don't have any emotions! You're a cold hearted bitch!"

"No. I'm balanced."

"Shut up!" Furious, Ikigaru grabbed a handful of dirt and through it at Kei. She ducked most of it, but it didn't help sand from getting into her eyes. She automatically dropped Ikigaru's foot to try and defend her eyes.

_"How can I defend myself, father, if I can't see?" I asked, touching the blindfold on my eyes. My father gently smacked my hand away. _

_"You have other senses, Sango," he said in his deep, gruff voice. With my eyes blindfolded, it sounded even gruffer to me. I heard a sword being drawn and I gulped. My father was going to fight against me using a real sword? Maybe demons had put something into the well-water to make my father suddenly insane._

_I couldn't SEE and he was going to use a REAL sword?_

_Something smacked my behind. I spun, drawing my own sword. My father laughed, somewhere in the darkness. My butt hurt._

_"Come on, Sango. You have other sense. Use them. What are you going to do if you get attacked at night?"_

_I gulped… and I listened._

Kei was blind. Even if she opened her eyes, everything she could see was blurry. Her body was automatically shedding tears to try and flush the dirt from her eyes. But she could still hear the attacks coming: the whistling of a punch, or the way the dirt crunched under Ikigaru's feet when she shifted her weight to kick.

Blocking a punch, her feet carried her forwards, and Kei found herself coming body-to-body with Ikigaru. Her hand raised, she was ready to punch…

"Kei!"

Fuu's voice made her stop. He sounded mad. Behind him, she could sense the aura of Kouga, and he was mad too. She didn't know why though. Were they mad because they were fighting? She was suddenly aware of her own appearance and tried to wipe off the blood and dirt from her face.

"What's the meaning of this?"

"Sensei," Fukou interrupted. His voice was tight, barely controlled. Kei hung her head in shame. He was _really_ mad. "Sensei, look at them. Question them later. Let me take Kei and get her cleaned up."

Kouga must have given them some kind of a non-verbal agreement, because soon Kei hear Fuu approaching her. His hand wrapped around hers, but it seemed colder than normal. She could practically feel his anger in the air.

"Don't cry," he growled.

"I'm not crying," Kei sniffled. "I have dirt in my eyes. I can't see."

He led her to the washroom, and closed a toiled seat for her so she could sit down. Before she sat down, she got a look at herself in the mirror. She looked like she had gotten her ass kicked. There were smudges of dirt all over her face, and a black eye forming from when she had gotten punched in the temple. Her bloody nose had bled a lot, leaving behind red streaks on her mouth, chin, and a few drops on her gi. When she had wiped it, she had smudged it so that there were light red streaks on her cheeks as well. Her hair was disheveled, and tears were turning red from her blood as they rolled down her cheeks, still trying to clean out her eyes.

Sitting down, she remained perfectly still, her hands still wrapped around her chest as Fuu ripped off a piece of toilet paper and ran it under the water. He gently took her chin in his hand, and began cleaning off her face for her. Though it hurt, she watched him while he worked.

He looked… stressed.

His green eyes were tired behind his glasses, and a little worried. He was paler than she normally remembered, but she wincingly smiled when she saw how his hair was ruffled. If Fukou normally reminded her of a sleek jaguar, then now he reminded her of a jaguar someone had roused from a comfortable sleep.

"What were you doing picking a fight with Ikigaru?" he demanded out of the blue.

Kei was still defensive. She scowled up at Fuu with watery eyes. "She started it!"

"Oh my God, what are you, Kei? Twelve? Don't start acting like a twelve year old around me! What did she say that made you so mad?"

Kei didn't even notice that Fuu seemed genuinely mad about the incident. She looked down, ashamed. "She insulted my looks…"

"And that was a good enough excuse for you to fight her, Kei? God, I never would have thought that you'd be so completely vain as to pick a fight with someone just for insulting your appearance."

"I did it to you when we were kids and you called me as grease monkey!" she protested, jumping up and jabbing a finger into his ribs. "Why wouldn't I…"

"Because we were little kids then, and you're almost an adult now! You should know better than to start picking fights with people, especially with people who are better than you at fighting! Are you sado-masochist or something? Because you sure as hell are acting like one, Kei!"

"She also insulted Neji!"

"Neji! We _all _insult Neji! Why does it all have to be about Neji? Neji, Neji, Neji! That's all I hear about today! I'm sick and tired of it! I wish that bastard would just go and fall off a cliff somewhere!"

"Why are you being so jealous of him? I told you before, that I…"

"Oh, just shut up!" he sneered. It was amazing that he had never once raised his voice, yet somehow Kei had needed to yell at him to make herself be heard over him. "I'm not the one who's jealous, Kei! I'm not the one who had to fight somebody who kept on _looking_ at me!"

"Have you _seen_ how she looks at you? It's disgusting!"

"Have you ever seen the way that Neji looks at you? It's plainly obvious that he wants you, but no, you're 'oblivious' to the whole thing!"

"Don't you dare try to make me into the bad guy in this argument, Fuu! No, I never do see the way that Neji looks at me, because…"

"Don't _you_ dare tell me that it's because you're too innocent and naïve. You're just as bad as the rest of your sex! Deep down, you're just as sniveling and powerless and gullible as the rest of them, and just like them, you'll always try and get power from the ones who are weaker than you by manipulating them!"

Kei was shocked. She couldn't believe that he was saying this to her. All the years she had known him,how he had felt about women, somehow, she had always been spared from ever having seen that anger firsthand. She had always been spared, because she had been special. Now that she was seeing him, it hurt her deeper than anything else he ever could have said.

Tears stung her eyes, this time actual tears. Her bottom lip quivered as she straightened her back to look him in the eye. She sniffled loudly. "Get out of here, Fuu." If he had any sense, he would have left, but he continued to stay his grounds. She punched him in the chest, but it was weak, and didn't even make him flinch. He just kept staring down at her.

"Get _out_! Get out of here, you bastard! God, she wasn't right, wasn't she? You really were just using me, because there's no way that someone as misogynistic as you could ever get over how you feel about girls! I can't keep doing this! I can't keep pretending that you're someone that you're not! Get out of here, and get out of my life, and don't come back!"

He smirked, much to her irritation. "And you said that you'd always be there for me."

"I would have been, you bastard, but it hurts too much, and it's not right!" she bawled, shaking her head and causing her tears to hang in the air. "It's not right that I continue to imagine that I love you for something you could be instead of what you are! I can't love you for what you are, because you make me sick! You make me sick, Fukou! I hate you! I wish that we had never met! I'd rather be alone than be put through this hell! I wanted to show you that he was wrong, but I can't! He…"

He reacted without warning. Blinded by her tears and hunched over, she wasn't expecting an attack. She hadn't meant to say his name.

She hadn't meant it. She didn't mean _that_…

His hand wrapped around her shoulder and pushed her into the wall. She gasped for breath, trying to get air from the way she was crying. Her grey eyes were wide with fear and surprise. Tears dripped down from her cheeks, leaving behind pale streaks on her bloody and smudged face. Her arms were still wrapped around her waist, holding herself together and trying to ease the pain in her ribs from the way she was sobbing.

He was furious, and he was hurt.

She hadn't seen him look so hurt since the car accident.

A sob threatened to escape from her lips. She continued to stare at him.

Slowly, his hand eased against her shoulder. Her eyes flickered to his other hand, and she realized that his arm had been raised, his hand formed into a firm fist, ready to punch her. She stared at it in fear. He'd never actually punched her before, never like this, but he had hurt people before protecting himself.

"Fu…"

His voice was icy, his green eyes as hard as jade. His whole body was icy, stiff and cold. She felt like she was talking to a stranger. Hery grey eyes widened as he leaned in. Kei knew she should prepare for an attack, but she couldn't bring herself to actually beleive that he would ever really hurt her...

"If you ever speak to me again," he said slowly, his voice a deadly hiss in her ear. "I'll kill you."

Without another word, he dropped her and he sped away. The door to the washroom slammed against the wall when he pushed it open. She could vaguely hear pieces of plaster drop to the ground. The door slammed shut, leaving her alone in the washroom, a piece of toilet paper dirtied with her blood laying on the ground, the water still whistling away as it ran.

She slowly slid to the ground, shuddering with anger and pain and tears. Her head collapsed into her knees, and she began crying harder again.

She knew exactly how it would have sounded from his perspective.

_"It's not right that I continue to imagine that I love you for something you could be instead of what you are! I can't love you for what you are, because you make me sick! You make me sick, Fukou! I hate you! I wish that we had never met! I'd rather be alone than be put through this hell! I wanted to show you that he was wrong, but I can't! He was right. You're a monster. I'd rather be alone than be with a monster like you. You are an accident. You spoil everything you touch."_

That wasn't what she _meant_. That wasn't what she had said!

Kei didn't know that being alone would hurt so much.

* * *

To be continued...


	24. My Favourite Mistake

AN: So... I'm posting this as I'm out the door on my way to Kempenfest, where I can get crisped by the sun. Lots of reviews for the last chapter, all of them of varying... niceness, for lack of a better word. (And disregarding that I doubt 'niceness' is a real word anyway.) So, again, just a few notes.

a) Meh.

b) The whole "Fuu hitting" thing... yeah. That was an examplary peice of bad writing on my part. Fuu did not hit Kei. Fuu did not even punch Kei. What I was aiming for was something like Fushigi Yugi where Tamahome is so overcome with emotion that he has to respond to it physically and punches the wall by Miaka's head. So... calm down. Would I honestly write a main male character in a romance who is abusive? Don't think so.

Enjoy.

* * *

Chapter Twenty-Four: My Favourite Mistake

"The what?" Fai asked into the receiver of the phone. He stared ahead in shock for a moment, then he covered the receiver and looked at his pale wife. "Kei'sat the hospital. She checked herself in complaining of stomach pains. They did an x-ray and found that she has a few bruised ribs. She's in the emergency room right now getting mended, but she'll be getting out anytime soon."

"Can we see her?" Sora asked impatiently, gripping Fai's arm.

He repeated the question to the man on the other end of the phone line, and he nodded. "Visiting hours are until eight. She's going to have to stay there over night for observation, but we can go see her. Okay, okay sir. We'll be right there."

* * *

When they got to the hospital, Kei was out of the emergency room. She was dwarfed by the hospital bed. The beeping of a heart rate monitor made her mother nervous. The sound annoyed Kei, but she was still a little too out of it from drugs to hear it. 

"Honey?" Sora asked, slowly coming into the room. Her daughter looked pale. She hadn't turned the lights on, and the room was lit by moonlight. It made her daughter look ghostly.

Slowly, Kei turned her head to look at her mother. She blinked in recognition, and licked her lips, readying herself to speak. Her mother stepped slower to her, and then sat on the bed. Kei flung herself into her mother's awaiting arms. Even with her drugs, she could still feel it when her sore ribs moved, but instead of the blinding pain she had felt before, it was a dull ache.

"Fuu and I broke up!" she bawled to her mother, her tears coming back anew. "He hates me!"

Sora held her daughter, soothingly brushing Kei's long hair and trying to cheer her up, but she was left wondering. How had Kei gotten this hurt? Was this the result of Fuu? She knew Kei would tell her eventually. For now, all she could do was hold her daughter and offer her what comfort she could.

* * *

Kei missed four days of school because of her injuries. In that time, everyone came to check up on her, from Jou to Neji, even Miyaki-sensei and Inuyasha. Jou brought her movies to watch and Shin brought over two liters of her favorite ice cream for her to eat during the movies. Neji came for a chat and brought her a teddy bear that held sign which read: get better soon. Inuyasha brought some of Kagome's soup. 

She was most surprised to see Inuyasha there. Prior to the incident, Fuu had once again been spending all of his free time at the shrine because Kagome and Inuyasha had gone again. When he showed up on his door step, he was as pale as his white hair. His eyes weren't as sharp as they normally were, and he looked as though he had been losing weight.

"I insist that you have some of this soup with me," Kei told Inuyasha as she hobbled around the kitchen. She pulled down two bowls. "You're not leaving until you have some of it, Inuyasha." She suddenly realized what she had called him and she began to blush as she looked over her shoulder at her teacher. "I mean, Yasha-sen…"

"Don't worry about it, Kei. Please, call me that. You did when you were Sango, after all, and it's just us. You don't have to keep up the formalities with me. I hate formalities," he said grumpily, even though it looked like he was starting to smile. "You should know that."

She smiled back at him and placed the two bowls and the chopsticks down on the table. Inuyasha opened the pot of soup and began to serve them while she hobbled around the table to her seat. Inuyasha watched her go carefully. It was painfully obvious that she had sustained injuries. Her eyes still held a little hollow look from the painkillers. Her nose was just beginning to stop being red, and her black eye had turned yellow as it faded, making her look like she was suffering from jaundice. Worse, however, were the marks he knew he couldn't see.

Kei had always been a quiet girl, busy contemplating or meditating, but since she had broken up with Fuu, her quiet demeanor had changed. Now, she was sad rather than thoughtful. She seemed much more like the little six year old she had been rather than the girl who hung out with friends of the opposite sex and teased them mercilessly, laughing and completely unware that she was a ray of sunshine in all their lives.

"I feel like a heel sitting here while you're having trouble moving around."

"Don't worry about it," she laughed, withholding a wince as her ribs protested her laughter. "I don't like being babied when I'm injured. You've really changed, Inuyasha, and for the better. Once upon a time, you'd just be complaining how my hobbling was slowing you down and complain how we humans don't heal fast enough."

Inuyasha merely handed her a bowl of Kagome's home-made soup.

"You know, when I was really little, I had a giant crush on you, because I could remember Miroku promising me that he would save me and fall in love with me, and be a man working on a shrine. When I was little, I thought that it was maybe you." Her voice plain and frank, though soft. Inuyasha wondered how many painkillers she was taking. "But as I grew up, and I began remembering about Miroku, I knew I was wrong, and I started falling in love with Fukou." Shepaused. She knew thatFuu would have told him about the fight they had had by now. Inuyasha was like Fuu's father, really. She didn't need to explain anything to him, but she couldn't stop her voice from wavering painfully. "What happened since then, Inuyasha? Which one of us changed? How come he hates me? How come he told me that he'd kill me if I spoke to him again?"

Inuyasha considered her question. He arched an eyebrow, watching her stir her soup absentmindedly. "How come you would slap him for groping you?"

"Because it was a physical display of affection and therefore had no place taking place in public," she quickly retorted. Inuyasha heard Sango in her voice, through and through.

"The point I was trying to make was that he didn't mean it. He's been moping around since the other day, when he isn't being sullen and defensive. He'd tried to scare you awaybecause you hurt him. You hurt each other. He didn't mean it. He was just being defensive, and it went into an extensive scale." He smiled at Kei before he took a sip of his soup. "One day, one of you will talk to the other, and forgive each other, and then it will all be right again."

"No, it won't be," she said, with such conviction and anger that he was surprised. He lifted his head to see her staring at him, her face as stony as that of the boy's he had seen the other day as Fuu swept the same step for the fifth time in a row. "I can't do it anymore, Inuyasha. I tried to tell him that, but I screwed it up. The point got across anyway. I love Miroku. I still do. I love everything he was: his intelligence and his smile and the way he put everyone's happiness before his. Fuu isn't like that. I love Fuu, I really do, and I always will love him, but clearly, I need to move on. I can't have what I had with Miroku with Fuu."

"No one has the exact same relationship, Kei. I know." She was a little surprised to hear the bitterness in his voice as Inuyasha recalled his own past. Even after all the decades, it seemed that it still hurt him to think of Kikyo and being pinned to the Goshinboku. It made Kei wonder if a heart ever really healed. He looked up at her unblinkingly. "I loved Kikyo, and I love Kagome, and they aren't the same relationship…"

"But they both made you happy. Fuu doesn't make me happy. I don't make him happy."

Inuyasha rolled his eyes. "Bullshit. You know that you made him happy. Jesus, Kei, you were the _only_ person who could make him happy."

She wasn't listening to him. Kei was full of denial. Even thinking of Fuu was enough to make her eyes water. "Ijust… I need to move on and let it go." Maybe it was just Inuyasha, but Kei didn't sound happy when she said that. "I can't be with someone who won't trust me because of what I am."

Inuyasha shook his head, watching Kei pour the soup into bowls. Little did she know that at one point Miroku had been ranting the same thing to Inuyasha, five hundred years ago. As much as it pained him to admit it, he thought that maybe it was about time Sango--Kei, he corrected himself--got to experience such obstinate prejudice.

* * *

The next day, Kouga came to see her. She got a bouquet of flowers from Kouga Miyaki, surprising her. She had never gotten flowers before. "They're beautiful!" 

As she put them into a vase, they began to talk, and once again, the conversation turned to Fukou and the fact that they were broken up. Like Inuyasha, he told her that Fuu hadn't meant what he had said.

"He was just mad."

"Yes, mad at me thinking I was vain, mad for thinking that I had fought Ikigaru for Neji's sake, mad at me for…"

"Why _did_ you fight Ikigaru?" Kouga asked suspiciously.

Kei looked at him a moment, leaning on the table as he sat across from her. For a man just going past middle age, he looked very good. He also sat in almost the exact same way as Inuyasha. But Inuyasha was her friend, and her teacher. Miyaki Kouga was just a teacher. She fixed one of the flowers as she spoke. "Can I tell Kouga and not Miyaki?"

He grinned at her, his fangs visible in his broad smile. "Honey, you can tell Kouga anything, and I swear to god it won't have anything to do with me being a teacher. Or a doctor, or a psychologist, or a warrior, or anything else I've been over the past five hundred years. Just tell me as being someone who wants to appease both sides of this argument."

"I think that would be considered a friend, Kouga."

"Then as a friend I stopped by to give my sick friend flowers to make her feel better. Now, why did you fight Ikigaru?"

"Because she kept looking at Fuu-sama! She kept eyeing him, and it was disgusting! For one, at the time that she was eyeing him, he was my boyfriend, and secondly, it was dishonorable! If she wanted to lust after him, she could have at least done it when I wasn't around, but because she did, it just made me mad. And then she punched me, and… and then the fight started."

"So you did to defend Fuu's honor." She nodded. Kouga rubbed his jaw, his blue eyes eyeing Kei from across the table. He soon grinned. "I only wish that you had been born into the wolf clan. Are you sure you aren't part wolf demon, Kei? Damn. We would have loved to have some spit fire like you in our midst. Maybe it's just me understanding where you're coming from—because when guys eye my wife, I'm ready to eat their hearts while they watch, yes, gross, I know—but I think it's perfectly acceptable. Besides, she threw the first punch, and she's now suffering too. She got kicked out of the high school."

Kei's eyes widened. "What? Why?"

"Ah," Kouga said, leaning towards her. He winked at her. "Now that has to go back to why Fuu is made at you, Kei. When we arrived on the scene, your back was turned to her. Haven't I told you repeatedly not to turn your back on the enemy? Ikigaru's a little… unhinged, it seems. She had a weapon in her hands, Kei," he said gently. He reached out and patted her cold hand. "He was mad at Ikigaru, not you. He was wrong to take his anger out on you, but he was worried about you getting seriously hurt."

* * *

'It doesn't matter,' she told herself as she moped around the house that evening. She had been thinking about her two teachers all day, and about her own reasons for not wanting to talk with Fukou. Wasn't she selfish? 'It doesn't matter anyway.' 

Her memories from a previous life had returned to her because… because of what? Had they returned because Fukou was endangering himself, somehow? Maybe the reason was simpler than that. The Shikon Jewel. Kagome had wished for everyone involved with the jewel to remain together. That was why they had been reincarnated… maybe that was why her memories had returned to her. Could she really be_herself_ without her memories of Kohaku or of the Sengoku Jidai?

'It doesn't matter anyway. We only have two weeks left of school and then we'll never have to see each other again. I go back to school tomorrow morning. All I have to do is last two weeks, and then I'll never have to see that sexist jerk again.'

She wondered, though, why that thought didn't make her as happy as she thought it would.

* * *

"So her ribs are still bothering her?" Fuu asked as he took his leather jacket out of his locker and tossed it to Jou. The red headed boy sat on the bench, watching Fuu as he causally put his earring back in his ears. Fuu was white and shaking from exertion of the match he had just had, but Jou was wondering if there was something more to it. Somehow, the topic of Kei had been brought up, and Fuu was going out of his way to make himself appear unconcerned about their mutual friend. 

"Yes. I'm surprised you didn't go and see her."

"Don't make me laugh. Why would I want to see her? We broke up, remember, Jou?"

"Yes, I remember. She managed to get it out while she was crying to me, you know. She sobbingly told me that you two had broken up. I couldn't believe her, not at first, and then I remembered something I read in an Escaflowne fan fic, Four Minutes, by Didolaki or something. In it, Dryden tells the reader that giving a patient with a broken rib painkillers it's just like giving someone with glaucoma painkillers. It doesn't help, it just eases over the pain, because it is very painful. It hurts to breathe. It hurts to expand your lungs. You have to work just to breathe. Kei's eyes are clouded over from those painkillers. The story goes on to say that if someone cries when they have a broken rib, they really have to be hurt, hurt by something much deeper than a broken rib that makes it hard to breathe. You catch my drift?"

He shut the locker door. "Yes. And I don't care," he growled, before suddenly losing his temper. He punched the locker door, leaving behind a small dent in the red metal. He cussed loudly. "Her ribs… I was the one who helped her to the washroom! Why didn't I see it? I want to be a doctor, Jou! I want to be a doctor, and she was my friend, and my freaking girlfriend, and I somehow missed the fact that she was that _hurt_!"

He was glas that Fuu had finally admitted it. Jou knew that Fukou was lying through his teeth about how he really felt about Kei. The very next day at the fight, he had waited for her outisde her locker, even after the bell rang. He had withstood all the pokes and prongs of the other students as they mocked him for standing there, like some kind of loser, or a whipped boyfriend trying to make up to his girlfriend. The fact that he had been holding a bouquet of daisies for Kei hadn't helped his image, either. When Kei didn't show up for school that day, Fuu had dumped the flowers and left school too. It seemed to Jou as if Fukou didn't feel like he had a reason for being there without Kei.

Jou stood up and handed his friend his jacket, patting Fuu's shoulder reassuringly. "Don't… I hear something coming."

"Probably Miyaki-sen… no. The gait is all wrong for Miyaki-sensei." Fuu drew himself up, getting ready for a fight. It seemed like since he had broken up with Kei, he had been getting ready for fights a lot more. Every step, every person walking by him in the hallway was a potential enemy.

There was a knock on the door.

"Come in," Fuu growled, doing up his jacket. When he looked up, a man in sneakers and holding a briefcase was walking into the room.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Aisowotsukatsu. My name is Hatsuhana. I'm here to make you an offer…"

* * *

School for the first few days were interesting. The classes that they had together, they didn't talk to each other. Even the science teacher was aware that something had passed between the two teenagers… and that both of them were too stubborn and scared to say anything about it. If, for one second, they had the power to be able to step outside their bodies and observe the other person, they would be able to see the plain longing, loneliness, and adoration they expressed for each other. 

They didn't talk in class. They went separate ways in the hallway. Kei snuck her lunch into the library and ate in the furthest corner from the librarian. Fuu simply disappeared at lunch time. Kei couldn't go to martial arts at the shrine because of her injuries, so they didn't see each other then, and when Fuu was walking home Kei remained cloistered in the library with her homework and textbooks, waiting for one of her parents to pick her up.

On one of the few times they were walking down the hallway within visible distance of each other, a timid-looking first year ran up to Fukou. Kei was able to pick up on every word.

"Fuu-sama, as you know, the cherry blossom festival is happening very soon, and I was wondering if perhaps, now that you're available, you might want to go... go... go with me as my d... date?" She finally managed to finish it.

Fukou just stared at her. He glanced over his shoulder to find Kei staring at him curiously, wondering what he was going to do next. He turned back to the first-year and walked by her. "I don't know where you got your information, but it's wrong. I'm not available."

That was the first time Kei felt any hope at all in a very long time.

Before Kei knew it, the cherry blossoms were in full bloom. She longed to go to the shrine and see the Goshinboku. When the trees blossomed, the Goshinboku had always been the prettiest of all the trees. Kei could almost imagine that a pale little girl, with a white blossom in her hair, was dancing around the tree… and then she felt a pang of sadness when she realized that it had been Kaede-chan, six years old, skipping around the tree, Shippo in tow, and a little Arashi trying to keep up with her.

All the memories hidden away had become fantasies, and she still longed, in some way, for them to become fantasies again. She didn't want to grow up…

Not without him…

"The blossom festival is going to be held tomorrow night," Neji said from behind Kei. She slowly turned to see him. He really was quite good looking, especially with the way the sun shone off his light-colouredhair and the way he was always impeccably attired. He really was the exact opposite of Fuu. Neji looked at her with sad eyes.

"I can't stand to see you like this. You haven't smiled since before you and him broke up. You didn't even smile when I brought you your get well gift, Konseki-san. Is there anyway I can make you smile?"

She merely shrugged in response, and he approached her cautiously. He snapped his fingers, as if he had just gotten a wonderful idea. "Say, I know what could be a lot of fun. Why don't we go to the blossom festival, Kei-san? I was going to go by myself, but going with someone else would be a lot more fun. What do you say?"

"Well…"

"Please?" To her surprise, he got down on one knee and took her hand. He looked up at her with puppy dog eyes. "Please say that you'll come with me, Kei. We don't have to go out long, because I don't want you to tire yourself out. We don't even have to go on any of the rides, because I don't want to see you hurt. Just come with me, and walk around with me, maybe play some games and pig out on cotton candy and apples and sweets with me. Please?"

For a moment it felt like she was looking down at Miroku. He had always given her the same puppy dog eyes and made her laugh. Now that Kei was seeing that same face, she had to tighten her mouth to keep from laughing. But she was also very nervous. He was asking her out on a date, and it was then she realized:

She had never been out on a date with anyone but Miroku/Fukou. No wonder she was nervous! She didn't really want to go, but… but what? Was she seriously going to stand around waiting for _him_ to apologize or come and ask her out again? Was she honestly going to stand around and act like she was available for him at any time, whenever it was convienent for Fuu? She needed to start getting over Fukou. What would be the harm in accepting Neji's kind offer?

Besides, she really did want to go...

"Okay, Neji," she eventually said. "I'll go with you to the festival, but only for a little while. I get tired very easily right now."

"Re… really? You will? I mean, you will! Wow! That's great! That's… that's… oh, Kei!" He leapt up and planted a kiss on her cheek before he winked at her. "I'll pick you up at your house at six o clock. We can get some dinner at the festival! My treat! I'll see you tomorrow, then, Kei!" He rushed away, grinning and smiling like a mad man.

Neji's excitement was catching. Kei actually found herself looking forward to going to the festival.

* * *

The evening of the festival, Fukou was driving out of Tokyo, and into the richest outskirts of town. His hands clammy as he directed the car up the winding drive. It was one thing to hear from the manHatsuhana that some rich gambler had wanted to pay for his education, but it was another to see that clearly, his benefactor was _very_ rich. 

Forget the heavy security at the front gate. Forget the sprawling, manicured lawns. The house was a mansion. No wonder the man—Hatsuahan had called him Shiroishi (Shiro white and ishi stone)—was so interested in sponsoring him if he had this much money to throw around!

He parked the car in a parking spot as long as his parking spot at his house. He glanced at his watch. It was ten to four. He was ten minutes early. Looking at the house ahead of him, he saw the door start to open. Though he was early, he must have been expected. A short, fat little man wandered out, his head shiny and balding.

"Ah," the dwarf-like man said, wrapping his hands around the oddest walking stick Fukou had ever seen. "You must be the visitor Shiroishi-sama is expecting. Please, come this way. Come, come, come… we haven't got all day!" he suddenly snapped.

Watching the dwarfish man waddle away, Fukou suddenly felt like he had landed in the realm of Alice in Wonderland, and being led to the crazy Queen of Hearts by the oddest—and possibly ugliest—version of the White Rabbit he had ever seen. Entering the mansion, however, he realized this was probably the prettiest Wonderland he could have possibly imagined. The house was decorated in the old style of Japanese houses, neat and tidy. There wasn't a speck of dust anywhere.

As the dwarfish man seemed to have disappeared, leaving Fuu alone in the long hallway with the shoji screen doors, he took a peek into one of them. What he found must have been the living room. Settees were placed around a low wooden table, meant for reclining and relaxation, and almost out of place in the room. He guessed that Shiroishi must have had them imported from Rome, or something like that. Behind a half-closed shoji screen he could see a television. Looking up at the ceiling, he saw speakers in the walls, carefully disguised to blend in with the walls.

Underneath a lamp, bracketed into the wall and made to look like an oil lamp, he saw pictures. Curious, he picked one of them up. The metal frame was heavy in his hands, and then he realized that it wasn't a photograph as he had thought. It was a painting. It was old, but perfectly preserved.

The woman in the picture was smiling, a few faint wrinkles visible in her cheeks and her eyes, but she seemed young yet. Her eyes were warm, and they seemed distracted, like she had been looking just past the artist at someone else. She wore a kimono with an intricate design. Though the colors were fading from time and the flowers on her kimono were now yellow, he would not have been the least bit surprised if the flowers had originally been gold.

"What are you doing in here?"

He accidentally dropped the picture frame, but a hand was there to grab the painting before it struck the ground. An elegant hand put the picture back down on the table. Fuu looked up and found a tall man standing over him. At least, he thought it was a man. He had to do a double-take to ensure he hadn't been mistaken. It was indeed a man, and probably the prettiest man he had ever seen.

The man was tall and well-built. He had long black hair pulled into a tight braid and it was slowly graying, but the man still looked young despite it. His brown eyes were ruthless, his lips pulled into a tight line. He really did look like a white rock, like a man carved from marble, every bit as pale and defined, as strong and as cold as the rock from which he had gotten his name.

In fact, the man had such a commanding presence, he filled the space around him to such a degree with such coldness and power, that it took Fuu a moment to realize that the man, Shiroishi, had only one arm.

"I asked you a question."

"S… Sorry, sir. I got lost. My guide left me. He was a short, rather plump little man with a balding head. I was just trying to find my way, and then I saw the painting, and it was so beautiful I had to look at it. She looks so very sad, sir. Who exactly is she? Is she the daughter of the master of the house?"

He knew the man had to be Shiroishi, but there was no sense letting the tall man unto that. Fuu knew he had to make a good impression of himself, and make up for being a snoop. He was trying to be as polite as he could be, trying to think of what Kei would do in his shoes, but the silent nature of Shiroishi was unnerving.

"She was someone I care about very greatly, and she is also none of your concern. You are Mr. Aisowosukatsu, are you not?"

"I am, sir."

"I am Shiroishi. Please, follow me. We will discuss the documents which regard our business arrangement in my study." He began to walk out of the lounge, and he glanced over his shoulder at Fuu. "Touch anything else in my house, and the business agreement will be over before it has even been finalized."

Fuu gulped. And people said _he_ was a cold-hearted bastard!

Almost two hours later, the papers had been signed, the arrangements made. Fuu had felt like he was signing his soul away to the devil, but if it meant that he could really be a doctor, if he could help people and make them feel better and heal them, then it was worth signing away his soul. He opened the briefcase he had brought with him, stolen from a trunk in the attic and the initials of his father hatefully scratched out of the side of the briefcase.

"I have just one more question, if I may, Shiroishi-sama." The tall man looked up at him, his elegant hand folded around the stack of legal papers through which he was sorting. "I don't understand why it was me."

He smiled, but it was not a very nice smile. Fuu felt like he had met the Cheshire cat of this strange Wonderland, and had discovered that the beast was actually a man-eating demon. "You people… you're always so concerned with yourself, monk. Every time I try to do something nice for someone, it's always 'why me?'"

"Monk?" he repeated, confused. He wasn't a monk, so why was Shiroishi….

"I originally had no interest in you. Originally, I wanted the girl, Konseki Kei. However, she was most adamant that I instead offer you this challenge. I went, taking her advice, and I watched you fight, and you are quite skilled, for a… man of your age. I doubt you could hold your own against myself, but…" The man leaned back in his chair, letting the papers slide on to the desk. "You are a much better fighter than Konseki Kei, I will admit that. She was right to have elected you in her stead."

Fuu was surprised. He was trying to sort through this new information, but his head hurt. It felt cloudy. He felt like he should recognize this man from somewhere, but he didn't know where. Flashes of pictures disturbed his thoughts, but they didn't look like the man in front of him. In his mind, the facial shape of this man had been different. The man in his mind had long flowing silver hair, and gold eyes, a blue moon on his forehead and stripes on his cheeks. Both of them, however, had one arm.

The man in his mind was a demon, while Shiroishi was obviously a human.

"Kei suggested me?" Shiroishi nodded. He smiled weakly. "Why… why would she go and do a stupid thing like that?"

"Perhaps because she knew you could do it," he wisely pointed out. Leaving Fuu to his question, he disappeared for a moment into an adjoining room. When he returned, he held in his hands a leather-bound book, the pages yellowing and dry. He tenderly brushed up the top of the book after he had set it down on his desk, and he stared at it.

"I wonder," he said slowly, "Fuu, if you might do me a favor."

"Of course I will, Shiroishi-sama."

"Your teacher is named Inuyasha, is he not? And he is married to Kagome Higurashi. They have a young child, named Kaede."

Surprised he knew all of this, Fuu nodded with wide eyes, indicating that Shiroichi-sama was correct on all accounts. "I believe that they should be given a chance to read this. You should read it yourself and so should Konseki-san. It contains information which you may consider… interesting, to say the least."

He reached across the desk and picked up the copy of the book laying on the desk. Her very carefully opened the first page. "What exactly is it?"

"A collections of entries from the diaries of the woman whose painting you saw downstairs. Originally she had transcribed it all into a scroll, but as language and books developed, I had it altered so that it would be readable." He smirked a little as he watched the young man, fascinated. He had never seen anybody look so scared from reading a book before, but it was evident that Fuu, unlike Kei, did not have his memories awoken. "If you don't understand the things contained within this book, you can always ask your precious Kei about them. I'm sure she'll gladly explain it all to you."

His hands shook as he began reading it. His heart pounded in his veins. Voices stirred in his ears. Power swarmed over his body, emanating from Shiroishi. He was barely able to read the opening on the very first page.

_It was all an accident._

_I have to make this perfectly clear before I start my story. It was all an accident. _

_It was accidental that poor Kaede-chan, Kagome and Inuaysha's daughter, became stuck in this world. It was all an accident that she had brought the Tetsusaiga with her, as she always did. The demon blood is stronger, it seems, in the past, when our more dangerous world increases the chance of its power being needed. It was all an accident that I was sent there the morning after Kaede-chan revealed herself to Arashi-sama, and the young priestess knew she had made a mistake._

_Everything following these things, I believe, are accidents as well._

_And so, you see, I have learned to like accidents very much._

All he saw was that one name. Arashi.

Arashi.

_My Arashi._

The voice was crisp and clear in his head. Opening his eyes wider, he could almost see the ghostly hands gripping the tattered pages of the book. On one hand, surrounded by a gauntlet and prayer beads, was a cloth that sealed his hand. He remembered all the nightmares he'd had where he had been terrified of what lay behind that hand. He felt like a staff was tucked under his arm. The rings chimed pleasantly.

He could almost see himself, see the man that was crying tears of joy as he read and read the name in the book.

Arashi.

_Arashi__ lived!_

_I want to remember her! Oh Buddha, let me remember her! I want to remember my daughter, and Shippou, and everyone! Let me remember them!_

_It will mean pain, and fears, and things I haven't experienced in five centuries, but I don't care! I know it will all work out in the end, and I want to remember them! Let me see Arashi's smile again! Let me hear her call me Daddy! Let me feel her arms around me and let me smile with pride again every time I pass a shrine and remembered how she was such a good priestess! Please, Buddha! I take back everything I ever said! I was wrong! I want to remember, I _need _to remember!_

"Arashi lived?" he asked, sounding hoarse. His eyes wouldn't lift from the paper.

"Arashi lived, and died in the heat of battle at the age of thirty-one. She was sorely missed by all who knew her. They said for years afterwards that she had the power of Kikyo, the tenderness of Kagome, the grace of her mother, and the smile of her father."

His cheeks were wet. He shut the book, his hands shaking, so that he didn't have histears spoil the pages. It never even occurred to him that she—he remembered her now, Rin, a cute girl who had grown up into a most beautiful woman—had mentioned Kaede-chan in her journals. The memories were opening up left, front, right, and center. Everything began making sense. He felt ill remembering some of the things he had seen. He felt sickened remembering the blood and the carnage and the skeletons that had scattered the ground, but he didn't care.

His baby girl had lived, and he and Sango could be proud of her.

Sango. God, he had loved that name.

Sango. Sango?

Kei!

Kei!

He felt suddenly numb. He had to be the dumbest man on the face of the planet. He had held the woman he had loved five hundred years ago in his hands, and he had pushed her away.

The book dropped from his hands. Shiroishi caught it, holding it there for Fuu to hold once he had recovered from his shock.

He'd had Sango again, just as he had promised, and they had fought, just as everybody does. He had let his anger get the best of him, and jumped to conclusions, conclusions which he _knew_ were wrong.

'If it's not too late, maybe I can apologize, and maybe I can get her back… I need her. I promised her… I told her I'd be there for her, and she was always there for me. Maybe it's not too late!'

He grabbed the book waiting for him, and snatched up his briefcase with the other hand. He looked up at, and he smiled. "Thank you, Sesshomaru-sama."

Without looking back at him, Fuu ran. He didn't know where Kei was, but if he had to tear down all of Tokyo to be able to get down on one knee and ask her to forgive him for being temperamental and bitter, then he would do it, even without the kazaana's help.

He got out to his car before he yelled and shouted out of happiness.

Arashi had lived, and died in the heat of battle. He hadn't killed their daughter. She had lived the way they had all lived, back then. He couldn't have been prouder of her. She had _lived_.


	25. Chapter One

AN: Well... the final chapter. Really, Kei and Fuu's story ends here, although there is still the epilogue to go, which merges together CiA, CaU, and D&H. I thought this chapter needed a lot of work, but I read it over, and I quite like it. It's just fluff. Pure, unadulterated fluff. There are things about it I would like to change: perhaps give the Neji issue more closure (but honestly, to have Fuu comfront Neji and get him to back off would technically be illegal, as would killing him) and I would have liked to have Fuu's entrance be more dramatic. To anyone whose read 'Daughter of the Blood', think of one of Daemon's entranes. Any of them. That's the kind of entrance I wanted for him.

Thank you for all of your support throughout the story. You've given me some very good insight into my own writings. In the future, I hope to correct the things you've pointed out to me in my own writings and try to perfect things which I find essential in any relationship, but, apparently, I cannot yet pull off in writing.

For all you Shippou fans (because you've all been asking about him) he will be making another appearance in the following chapter, but I think he'll have a much bigger part in D&H, once I get around to writing some more of it. I will begin posting D&H, as of right now, on Sept 6th. That is my plan. By then I will be back at school and will have two or three days to do nothing but sit on my arse and write.

It's a dream come true.

Now, on the responses... trying to be quick right now. Oh, and next week: Nihil Credo update. Right now, I'm atually trying to find a fluffy song for this chapter's title. Go figure that my boyfriend doesn't have any fluffy music stored on his computer.

clamofmacabre: As I stated in the first chapter, this is a sequel to Complete and Unconditional, in which Arashi forst became introduced. She has been mentioned before in the story, but only in passing. Why? Because they didn't know anything about Arashi until their memories were reawoken. In Fukou's case, because of how he died, he was purposefully blocking memories of Arashi because he thought he had been a horrible father for failing to protect his daughter.

Note: I can't beelive how many of you are concerned about the Neji stuff! (_Sango's_ the jealous one!) ...I'm horrible. Shutting up now.

Kuro Dora... what they hell is this radio playing? Since when does B101 play rap? I leave for two years, and everything is... backwards! Anyway, nah. I wouldn't have Fuu "pull an Inuyasha" (not realted at all to "pull a Miroku", althought I will have to remember it for future chapters). For one, it never rectifies the situation, just makes it worse. Secondly, it's entirely too predictable. Arg, there's nothing good on the radio!

Siren of Erised: I fully believe in the emotional power of the clam! (Not the oysters, though. They're too horny to have emotions.)

lilSango: Two chapters. And I can't recall where they idea of Sesshy being the "prettiest man" Miroku had ever seen. My friend found a comic of Miroku groping Sesshy from behind and asking to bear his children, thinking Sesshy was a woman. That image has always stuck with me, so that's where that line came from. And it's a common theory in fanficdom that in the future, demons have to disguise themselves as being humans because they are the minority. Jumping on the bandwagon allowed me to concentrate more on the characters.

Chadrific: He did like this: Miroku taught Arashi how to fight. He taught her everything he knew about using her powers. Hell, he taught her everything he knew (except in regards to sex, being the protective father that he is), and yet, when her life hung on her ability to defend herself, she got caught. Miroku never knew that she made it out of that fight alive. He thought that he had failed his daughter by not being the proper teacher, and not being the proper father by doing everything in his power to be able to save his only child. So as far as he's concerned in that matter, he killed Arashi because he failed her.

Hoshiko: Fast _again_ on updating, love. Normally, when I have regular computer access, I try to do it once a week, and generally succeed. Not only am I too busy to write a sequel to the Blooded, I would also have no idea what the hell to write at this point. What's left in that story that I didn't cover? So instead I'm covering my addiction to the paranormal by writing _Nihil Credo_.

Aamalie: I'm only an evil genius 1/3 of the time. 1/3 of the time I'm evil, 1/3 genius, and sometimes I'm both at once. (That's a complete lie, for the record. I'm incredibly ditzy at times... mainly in regards to sexual innuendoes. Which is why I still find it funny three years after I started writing SM fics that I can write a half-decent Miroku!)

purplepeopleeater: Stupidly noble? Hm... I _like_ it!

Okay... must _really_ start looking for a theme song now, otherwise, it's not going to be updated... God bless Lyrics on Demand... Today's theme is "Chapter One" by Lifehouse. I storngly recomment reading the lyrics. I love Lifehouse: http/www. lyricsondemand. com/ l/lifehouselyrics/ chapteronelyrics. html You know the drill. Delete the spaces.

Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter Twenty-Five: Chapter One

Just as he had said, Neji had arrived at six to pick up Kei. He had seemed totally shocked when she had walked downstairs wearing a light blue kimono with a pretty design on it in shiny royal blue thread, the kimono tied together with a plain white obi. At first he had thought the designs were supposed to be waves. They were in the car when he commented on it.

"No," she said gently, fondly touching the kimono. "They're supposed to be coral."

They parked not too far from where the festival was being held. The sun would be setting in an hour or two. Then the festival would really be busy, filled with teenagers out on dates and with families playing games and buying sweets the little kiosks sold. He helped her to the restaurant, where they had a very small meal. He promised her charmingly that they would fill up on sweet rice balls and chocolate.

After supper, they wandered around the festival. The sun was setting. Kei was growing tired. She had to lean on Neji for support. He wrapped an arm around her, drawing her close and letting her lean on him. She blushed. Neji wasn't as hard as Fukou, but he did smell nice, and he was warm and comforting. The way his fingertips brushed her neck made her shiver with pleasure. He treated her gently, and she liked it.

"Want to try playing the fishing game?" he asked her, pointing to one of the stands. She watched as people tried to catch fish with little were nets. It was harder than it looked. If you hit the water too hard or were rough with the net in any way, it broke, and then you lost your chance to catch the fish.

"Okay," she agreed.

Both of them paid and sat down. Kei was glad to get to sit after having just walked around. Part of her worried—the adult part of her mind which other adults had always noticed—that maybe she was pushing herself too hard, but she didn't care. She needed the relaxation and entertainment offered by the festival. She needed to get her mind off of school for a little bit, off of entrance exams, and off of Fukou.

The last excuse was most important.

Neji ruined his little net as soon as it struck the water. Kei had hers on her lap as she rolled up the sleeve of her kimono. Carefully, she stuck the paddle in the water, sinking her arm in as far as her elbow. Her other hand kept her sleeve up and out of the cold water. The fish scattered, but as her fingers began to turn numb, they began to swim back to her.

To her surprise, Neji patiently waited as she drew her hand very slowly out of the water. Then she waited again as the fish swam near her. With a quick flick of her wrist, she grabbed a fish swimming near the top of the water and drew him up. A goldfish flopped on her little unbroken net. Neji gave her a congratulatory kiss on her cheek for catching it, and she carried it around in her bag for the next half hour, until she saw a little kid crying.

"Here you go," she told the little kid, handing him the bag with the fish. The little boy gave Kei a broad grin, revealing a missing front tooth before he ran off, drying his tears and hollering to his family to wait so he could show them his new prize.

She smiled after him fondly. As she stood up, she froze. Neji's hand was encircling her waist, warm and supportive. That wasn't what bothered her, or what made her freeze. What had bothered her was the fact that she was certain she had seen Fukou in the crowd, standing out in the sea of happy faces with a look of horror, and in the sea of colorful kimonos because of his black leather jacket.

When she frantically looked around her, he was gone. Neji asked her what was wrong, but she lied and told him it wasn't anything. Kei was distracted as they continued to walk around the festival.

She wasn't able to get Fuu's face out of her mind. He had looked so wounded and vulnerable…

* * *

He stalked back to the car, furious, but hurt underneath that. He was just getting mad to defend himself. He really was hurt. Climbing into his car, he banged his fist against the steering wheel, his earlier elation forgotten. He didn't think he would ever be that happy again. 

He had realized just how much she had meant to him, how much they had gone through each other in this life and their last, and he had lost her again. It hadn't taken her long to find a replacement for him, he bitterly noted. Had he seen her with Shin or Jou, he wouldn't have cared so much. Shin had made it very clear that girls had no interest in them, and Jou, although he loved Kei, was like a brother to her. Kei would never have gone out with Jou as anything but a friend.

But Neji… _Neji_…

She had stood there, looking stunning, the blue coral pattern on her kimono attracting his eye and making him smile. Sango. Coral. She had looked like a water goddess as she stood there, her long hair held back with a simple white ribbon, just as it was always held back, her hollow face beginning to be filled with liveliness again, forgetting the pain her body had caused her… forgetting the pain that _he_ had caused her.

And then that bastard had appeared and stuck his arm around her waist and held her close, protectively. He had held Sango that same way. Maybe Sango and Kei hadn't realized what it had meant, but he did. God, did he know. Through body language, Neji was claiming Kei. He was keeping her close, protecting her.

He wanted to rip Neji's head from his shoulders.

He put his hand on the ignition, but he couldn't seem to start the car. He didn't want to drive while he was so out of it. His hands on the steering wheel, he stared straight ahead, his mind lost in his own thoughts.

She had always told him that Neji had meant nothing to her…

Damn it, why did it have to be _Neji_!

* * *

Held in Neji's arms, she relaxed against him. They hadn't stopped in a little while. Her torso was starting to ache. Sweat was beading in her long hair. Her breathing was raspy, and she was feeling light-headed. They way he touched her was beginning to make her itch. She was warm, and far too hot. 

"Neji?" she asked, lifting her head from his shoulder. "Neji, can we please stop for a moment? I'm really getting tired."

"Of course we can. Just hold on a moment longer. We're almost there."

"Almost where?" she asked, stifling a yawn. Her drugs were starting to take effect. She could feel herself starting to feel drowsy. The fact that they were lost amongst the cherry blossom trees didn't help either. She didn't have the glittering lights or noises of the festival to wake her up. Forcing her eyes to stare open, she watched the trees pass her by. They looked like ghosts in the darkness. It was actually kind of creepy.

Within a moment, she heard the sound of running water. Neji guided her past a few bushes, and she found herself looking at a little clearing. It was exactly the type of clearing she would slept at with Miroku five hundred years ago. A little pool of water had coalesced from two tiny streams, the reflection of the moon making the surface look silver. The grass was long and wild. The blossoming trees framed the clearing. She felt like she was in a fairy-tale world.

"It's beautiful," she sighed. She all but fell down, having trouble bending over. She kicked off her sandals before putting her feet into the pool and relaxing. "How in the world did you ever find out about this place?" she asked Neji, giggling at the cold water on her toes.

"It's a secret," he laughed. Hearing his laughter, she turned to smile at him, but paused. He was leaning against a tree, his arms crossed over his chest, his eyes affixed on her. He wasn't taking in the sight of the forest, or of the moon and the stars, he was taking in her, and she recognized that expression. Kei didn't recall seeing it before, but Sango had, and the same dread and fear which had filled Sango when she had first seen Miroku look at her with such intensity and obvious longing and need now filled Kei.

She suddenly realized what kind of a predicament she was in. She was alone in the woods with a boy. There was no one near them. Kei had always yelled at girls in movies when they had gotten into that very predicament. It was stupid. One should be better aware of their surroundings than that. She had always wondered how they had allowed themselves to get into such dangerous environments. Out like this, with no one around and the safe lights and sounds of the carnival covering up you screams of terror... No on would ever hear you scream...

But this wasn't a movie, she pointed out to herself, pulling her gaze away from Neji and looking at the sparkling water. It wasn't like Neji was going to try and take advantage of her, because he was her friend. Friends didn't take advantage of their friends. But the point was that a bystander would think they had come out into the clearing for something other than to enjoy the beautiful night sky. Kei didn't want to see her good name being soiled.

The idea that it had been soiled by dating Fukou had never occurred to her.

* * *

He started the engine.

* * *

She heard Neji approaching her. His footsteps were sure and calculated, bringing back memories from when she had been camping and had heard thieves approaching their campsite. Then she had always looked over at Miroku, who more than often lay across the smoldering fire from her, and she had always found him awake, his weapon held ready.

It was frightening to hear that same sound when you were alone.

* * *

He looked back in the rearview mirror, looking for an opening in the traffic.

* * *

She tried to stand up, but found that she couldn't. Her head was still a little drowsy, her ribs aching. She didn't have the energy to stand up, not yet, but soon she would. She was becoming defensive, her senses expanding and adrenaline starting to flow through her body.

* * *

Fukou felt like something bad was happening, somewhere. He knew that it had to involve Kei. He felt a surge of anger in his body. Malevolent and strong, it made his teeth grind and made him swear he smelled blood.

He was a useless coward. Was he seriously going to walk away and wallow in his pity? Was he seriously going to let someone like Kei--_his_ Kei--be subverted and used by a greedy, spineless, spoiled little brat like Neji?

Was he really that weak that he was going to let her go? Wasn't letting her go be the strong thing to do? Miroku would have let her go... When Sango had been courted by Kuranosuke, he hadn't like it, but he'd thought it had made her happy and he was willing to let her go because all he had wanted was for her to be happy...

Of course, there was one catch with that.

He pulled the key from the ignition.

He wasn't Miroku.

* * *

She felt his aura brush against hers as he sat down close to her. It made her shudder with repulsion.They weren't actually touching, but with her expanded senses, Kei could feel the warmth of his body and the texture of his kimono rubbing against her clothes. It bothered her. She could practically feel the heat in the air around him andhis aura leeching into hers. Kei knew exactly what he wanted as he leaned in her direction. She could hear that his breathing was slightly raspy. He smelled a lot like sweat from walking around so much. It was almost funny, the idea of pretty-boy Neji working up a sweat just from walking around a carnival...

She stared ahead blankly, trying to look disinterested. Maybe he would get the idea that she wanted a few minutes of alone time if she distracted him…

"Nervous?" he asked, flashing her one of his charming smiles.

'Damn it,' she mentally winced. She had to go out with someone who was stupid… Her face expressionless, she looked at him. "What do you mean?"

"Well, if Fuu had done to me what he did with you, then I know I'd be a little nervous when another person expressed interest in me. But believe me, Kei, we're not all like Fuu. Some of us are nice guys. I'm a nice guy. I'm not like Fuu where I'm going to try and seduce you by acting like a block of ice one moment and like your friend the next,because I _am_ your friend, Kei."

When he picked up her hand and held in his, she realized that her hand felt like ice. She was cold; she was scared. Her blood was being drawn back from other parts of her body and directed to more vital areas, like her lungs and brain. Her ribs ached from her increased heart and blood rates.

"I don't under…"

"Fuu always drops his girls once he tired of them, but he really liked you. I don't care if you two had sex. You're still gorgeous, and I still want you. I'll always want you," he purred, reach out and stroking her cheek.

She slapped his hand away, her grey narrowing. "You imbecile. He's never done anything but kiss me. And it's none of your business what we did together." Rolling her eyes, she stood up and dusted off tiny pebbles from her kimono. "I'm tired, Neji. I'm going home now. I wouldn't suggest calling me or talking to me for a day or two. I might remove parts of your anatomy if you do."

She hobbled away from Neji, leaving him there by the edge of the tin silver brook. She couldn't remember ever being so insulted in either of her lives. Her eyes concentrated on where she was stepping. She had been so focused on getting up that she had forgotten her shoes by the side of the pool.

'Stupid, stupid Neji! Stupid everyone!' she hissed, taking out her anger in her thoughts. She let out a little yelp as she stepped on a sharp rock, and she hobbled back a few steps. She backed into a warm body. For a moment, she thought it was Fukou, but when she looked, she found it was Neji.

"He didn't touch you?" he demanded, sounding confused. She shook her head as his hands gripped her arms. His hold was tight, but against the muscle of her arms, it didn't hurt. He couldn't even hold her, but he scared her nonetheless. He was irrational. "Stop lying to me, Kei! He had to have done something to you! He's always wanted you, right from the very beginning, I could see it! Then he finally gets you, and he only kisses you? I don't believe it!"

"Not every guy is as sex-crazed as you are, Neji! Fuu was nothing but a perfect gentleman with me. Now let me go."

"But…"

"I'm warning you, Neji. Let go of me before I kick you."

"But…"

She pulled her leg back and kicked him as hard as he could. He let go of her, hobbling back and looking down at his leg as if it had betrayed him. He looked up to find Kei turning back from him for the second time. Then he saw her freeze. Straightening, he found Fuu standing in the forest.

With his dark hair and his dark clothes, he practically blended in with the black night and the tree trunks.He moved so that his outline was aginst the cherry blossoms. The white petals almost seemed to be luminescent, reflecting the sky light back uponFuu so that his face was visible. He didn't look pleased. His mouth was tight, the lines of his face tight, and his eyebrows drawn together. Hiswhole body was still, the muscles in his shoulders and arms too tight with anger to be able to move, yet he still seemed to glide with grace. Kei took a nervous step away from Fukou, his green eyes following her. She felt like prey caught by some kind of a wild animal, but Neji felt ten times worse. He stared back at Fuu, and then turned and ran away. He had gotten in enough fights with Fukou to know that he was going to get his ass kicked if he hung around any longer. And he was also a bystander. He still knew how Fuu felt about Kei. It was plainly obvious.

So he ran, before Fuu could kick his ass for touching Kei.

Although scared at seeing him again, remembering the way his breath had landed on her skin and the way his words were said with outmost seriousness, Kei put her hands on her hips and looked at him with reprimanding. "You didn't need to frighten him away, you know. God, how come I couldn't see how much of a bully you were back when we were six?"

Hobbling still, and now her foot still sore from the rock on which she had stepped and from kicking Neji, she pushed him out of the way as she headed back to the festival, grumbling to herself. She missed the way his eyes lingered on her softly, or the way he let her walk by.

"I've come back for something of mine," he told her.

She stopped immediately. The fear didn't release her. If anything, it tightened around her heart. She recognized that tone. She hadn't heard it in five hundred years, but even if she were deaf, she would have recognized it. Fukou was usually guff. His deep voice wasmeant to be intimidating, or suggestive when he was with a girl. This voice different. It was light, simple… and happy. She could hear the unrestrained happiness in that voice. She wanted to turn around and look at him, but she was too afraid. If she turned around and he was mad at her still, she'd start crying, and then he'd start getting mad at her for crying. Boys didn't like it when girls cried.

Her voice wavered. "What do you want back, Fuu-sama?"

"You."

She didn't turn around. Somehow, she managed to keep from turning around. "Don't say such things," she snapped at him. She held her breathe a moment longer before she willed herself to turn around. When she saw the expression on his face, she had to look away to keep from crying. She spoke down to the ground. "Don't say it unless you really mean it."

"I told you once that I was going to come back for the other part of my soul, and that when I did, I would realize that you're the best person to have my heart. I lied. You're not just the best person, Kei. You're the only person."

Kei heard him approaching her, but she didn't move. All she could think about was the last time she had seen that gentle expression, when he had asked her to bear his children on that day five hundred years ago. Soft fingertips reached under her chin to draw her face back up. She didn't even have time to see his expression before he kissed her, sending shivers down her spine. His lips trailed over hers in soothing little waves, the warmth of his breath caressing her face. His hands hovered nearby, barely touching her. Her head swam from his kiss. Her eyes closed, and she relaxed against it, embracing the feelings his touch caused her, embracing the way she wanted to cling to him to never let him go again, and letting their happiness overtake all their other emotions.

Breaking the kiss, he threw his arms around her and drew her close. She winced in pain, but he couldn't tell. He just hugged her as tightly as he could, desiring to never part from her again. Kei nuzzled her face into his shoulder. She didn't even mind the feeling of his cold leather jacket pressing unvomfortably into her cheek. She closed her eyes fiercely and tried to forget how she had been treating him for the past week. They'd both been idiots.

"I'm sorry, Kei. I didn't mean it. I didn't mean any of it!"

"I know you didn't, Fuu. I know you didn't," she consoled, rubbing his back. "People never mean the things they say when they're mad. I forgive you, and I'm sorry too. God, I'm sorry! That wasn't what I meant to say, I shouldn't have said any of it! I just… I was so upset that you didn't seem to trust me, that you still thought your dad was right, and he's not. Deep down, you know he's wrong! Me, your mother, Kagome, Kaede, Arashi, Kohaku's Sakura, we're not like that! And then I said your name without realizing it, and I felt so bad!" she bawled. "God, I'll never say your name again, Fuu!"

"But I love hearing you say it," he admitted. He lifted his head from her shoulder and found her staring up at him. He smiled and his hands gently brushed her cheeks. "I mean it, Kei. I love it when you say my name like that. I don't want you to ever be formal with me again, not in this life or the next one. I don't. I know you, inside and out, I know you Kei, and I always will, so no more formalities."

She continued to cry, but rather than get upset that she was showing emotions, he was trying not to cry from happiness himself. "But… but you remember. I can tell that you remember, just from how you looked at me. You've never looked at me like that, not since I can remember, no matter how hard I wished I would see him looking at me, you always remained closed off from me. What made you…."

"Sesshomaru," he replied, cutting her off. "He lent me a book I'm supposed to give to Kagome and Inuyasha. Arashi lived."

"Of course she did…"

"No, you don't understand. I… Miroku… We… I thought she had died. There were bandits. They had a knife to her throat, and then they stabbed me from behind, and the last thing I remember hearing was her screaming." He shuddered. "But she lived through it. She lived a long time, for back in the Sengoku Jidai. But not as long as Kaede. No one lived as long as that old hag." His cheeks went red. "I mean… Kaede-_sama_…"

Kei was laughing at him, laughing so much it didn't matter that her ribs were hurting. In the midst of her laughter, she couldn't feel the pain. "God, I missed you."

"I can't believe you waited this long for me…"

"Not for you, not for Miroku. I missed Miroku, I did, but I missed Fuu more. This past week was torture. I don't care what you act like, or who you are, or what you come back as, I'll always love you, Fukou."

He looked puzzled. "But you said…"

"They were said out of anger. I didn't mean them. I was frustrated. Every time I tried getting close to you, you just pushed me away. I didn't mean it. I want to be by your side, through thick and thin! Sango and Miroku, Kei and Fukou: we defeated Naraku, and now we can defeat University and help people the way we always did and god, yes, I'll bear a dozen kids for you and you'll be the best dad on the face of the planet and I will never let you go until the world crumbles into dust and the stars fade and even then I will still love you no matter how much of a pervert you become!"

"Kei?"

"Yes?"

"Don't forget to breathe."

"Oh, shut up, Fuu, and let me enjoy this moment."

* * *

-The End 


	26. Everywhere

AN: Thank you for all the awesome reviews! After so many nice comments, it makes me feel ashamed to post this. It's so… unfinal, and brings up things which could have easily been discussed before hand, but I didn't want to detract from the real issue of the story: Kei and Fuu's relationship. So… I post the final chapter of CiA, the epilogue, and I wish that I could have done better to give this story a brilliant way out. So for those of you who don't want to continue: don't. For those of you interested in my idea of "crap" or who are genuinely interested, read on.

Love,

The PoF (See you in D&H)

**Epilogue: Everywhere**

Kei woke up to sunlight streaming through her window. She rubbed her eyes and sat up in bed, hearing someone moan beside her. She was pleasantly surprised to find that it wasn't a dream. Fuu lay in bed beside him, still clad in his black jeans, an arm thrown around her shoulders protectively. Fukou's memories were awake once more. It would be odd at first for him, remembering all the things in the past. Kei knew. She had been through it herself. But eventually the two parts of his mind would come together like two meeting drops of water on a windowpane, and Kei would be there for him through it all.

_Happy_?

She turned away from the window to see Sango and Miroku leaning against her desk. Sango sat in a chair, her legs braced on either side of it and her long hair hanging over hers shoulder. Miroku's hand was laced through her hair, a smile plastered across his face. Both of them were a little see through, like ghosts. It was the first time Kei had seen Sango outside of her dreams. She yawned, still mostly asleep. She was somewhere in between being awake and in the dream world, a place of magic where her dreams projected themselves into the real world.

"Astral projections?" she wondered out loud, arching a curious brow as she clung tighter to her pillow, using it as a brace as she lay in bed.

_Remnants of a pleasant dream, actually, _Sango's cool voice was said. _You expressed some concerns in your dream that I thought I'd try answer for you._

"Okay, but why is he here?" she asked, gesturing the Miroku as she sat up in bed.

The man smiled. He had been smiling already, looking proudly between his incarnation and the ghostly form of his wife, but he suddenly looked just _at her_. Kei had to smile back in return, and she felt her heart give a tiny jump. Even in death, his eyes were still deep blue. For a man who'd been dead more than five hundred years, Miroku was a very attractive man. He knew it, too. His clear, deep voice echoed inside her head, like the whispers of the wind through the leaves. _There's a part of me in you too, Kei. It's very hard to be as close as you were to me without me having made an imprint on your life. Likewise, Fukou has some of Sango in his mind. Some of her personality, copies of the traits he admired in her, things he couldn't help but emulate in his life…_

"Probably the mood swings," Kei joked, looking down at the man sleeping next to her.

_And _that_ would be me in you. Now then, you wondered why you needed to awaken me, of what exact trouble Fukou was in?_ Kei nodded. _Well, as best as I can explain it, although the memories in his mind weren't active his subconscious was still aware of it. Rather than face his fears, he mourned over them and allowed them to fester. He had no way of fixing the matter of Arashi. How was he supposed to deal with killing his daughter because he was weak from old age, and fearing that she hadn't been able to defend herself better because he had failed as a teacher? He couldn't. So he just let them fester. That was why he was bitter, that and his father. He should start to really open up now… especially now that he has you._

Kei smiled and blushed faintly. "So Sesshomaru-sama telling him that Arashi had lived past that fight was enough to make his memories reawaken?"

_Yes,_ Sango answered. _I'd expect that he'll have nightmares at first, the same way that you did. Both of us were very scarred from that lifetime, and deeper scars were still brought over, like the mark we share on our back, Kei. He'll dream about the kazaana, and he'll try to push you away while he confronts the fear of accidentally losing you, but he'll pull through._

Smiling down at Fuu, she nodded. "I know he will. Miroku was always so much stronger than me. So was Fukou. I always had a supportive family. He's always had no one. If I'd had no one, I would have died long ago. I'll be here waiting for him."

_That's not entirely true, you know,_ Miroku pointed out. _He's always had you._

"And he always will." With her promise, the two ghosts faded away. Kei looked out the window, sighing with contentment. She didn't even worry what would happen when her parents found out that she and Fuu had slept in the same bed. She was just continuing to bask in the moment.

"Mornin', Kei," Fuu yawned form beside her. She smiled at him and leaned down, planting a kiss on his forehead in greeting. He leaned his arms behind his head, trying not to think about how messy his hair must look. "Have I ever told you that you're beautiful?"

She blushed deeply and shook her head. He seemed surprised. "I thought I had… I'll have to tell you that more often," he grinned, leaning up to kiss her mouth gently. His arm looped around her as he drew her back down. "Now come back to bed, Kei. It's Sunday. We can sleep in today. I don't want to get out of this bed with you, not for all the money in the world."

"That reminds me… why did you see Sesshomaru?" she inquired. Before he could answer, the phone was ringing. Kei leaned over Fukou to answer it. "Moshi moshi?"

He watched as her face became more and more grave, yet somehow he remained silent. She hung the phone, and looked at him. "Kaede-chan is missing. She's been gone since last night."

Everyone was out looking for Kaede: her parents, her friends, Fuu and Kei, and their families… They searched for hours, and told everyone they could that she was missing in hopes that they would join the ever-expanding search party. When the two met up with Jou while searching a shopping mall for Kaede, they told him what happened, and he promised to tell his dad. His dad was a cop at the precinct near the school. Jou assured his friends that he would get his dad to forego the thirty-six hours required to file a missing persons report.

Jou smiled. "After all," he had told them. "I like Kaede-chan. She's the only other girl besides Kei who doesn't think that spiders are creepy and who thinks that putting green jell-o into the fountains in the mall is the most amusing thing she's ever seen."

They regrouped that evening, at the shrine. Kei never remembered Kagome looking so shaky, or Inuyasha look so worried. The other people drifted away, and Kei assured her parents she would be okay. She'd sleep over at Fuu's house after they made some supper for Inuyasha and Kagome and made sure that they ate, and they would resume the search in the morning. Kei would have said anything to get rid of her parents so that she and Fuu would really get the opportunity to discuss things alone with Kagome and Inuyasha. The only place they had left out of their search was the well-house.

"The well?" Kei inquired when they were alone.

Kagome frowned at Kei's inquiry, but it disappeared after she looked away and leaned upon Inuyasha for support. Kei watched her eyes mist over as he kissed Kagome's hair, trying to be supportive. "No. She's not there. I… I don't know how. Inuyasha…" She reached up and squeezed her husband's hand as he froze at the mention of his name. "He tried going through the well to see if she had gone through the other side to see Arashi, but… It… it's been sealed up. I don't know how, but I suspected this would happen eventually. Someone had to seal up the well so that I unsealed it 1997. It figures it would be Arashi-chan. Oh," she added, weakly smiling at Fukou. "It's nice to see that you finally have all of your memories back, young man. We've been waiting for you for a long time. I suspect that maybe your powers might start to wake up again, now."

"Powers?" He looked confused for a moment. Then he smiled. "Oh. You mean all of the monk-stuff… actually, I'd prefer that they didn't, otherwise I might need lessons to start using ofuda again. I want to concentrate on university. Besides, Kagome, your powers were different than mine. You had so much of it, your powers couldn't help but be active once you hung out around demons. I doubt I have that much power."

"Only time will tell… now can we get back to the issue here?" Inuyasha growled. Kei was eyeing him; she had been eyeing him since she had gotten to the shrine. There was something different about him, but she couldn't figure out what it was.

"The sword!" she gasped. True, he did look scruffier than normal, but on a closer look she noticed that for once the sword had left his side. "Inuyasha, where's Tetsusaiga?"

His face fell, suddenly looking older than it did. For the first time, Kei noticed the crow's feet at the corner of his eyes and the laugh lines lining his mouth. His voice was bitter when he spoke. "I don't know where it is. The only other person who can hold Tetsusaiga is a human, or a half…. She took it with her…" Realizing what that meant he looked both angry and confused. "Kaede only takes that sword when she does through the well! That stupid bi…" The word died in his throat when Kagome shot him a look that could have killed even a full-blooded demon. Inuyasha controlled his anger, but barely. "If the sword is missing, it means she's gone through the well, but how did she go through?"

"She went through before the well was sealed, obviously," Fuu pointed out.

"Then the question is not where has she gone, but how do we get her back from five hundred years in the past when the well is sealed from the other end?"

Kagome began to look a little hopeful. "The mask! A… and the demons! Inuyasha! Remember the mask? And that big floating demon thing that looked like a baby chicken playing a flute?" Inuyasha looked at her like she was insane. "Demons exist nowadays as they do back then, and things can be sealed! You were sealed, and so was the mask, and that sword we had, the one that possessed you! Maybe Kaede is sealed up somewhere!"

It seemed like a long stretch, but Inuyasha just looked plain pissed at the idea. They all watched until his face paled to the point where his silver hair began looking darker than his skin. Kagome clutched at his red shirt frantically, leaning on his for support both physically and spiritually. Inuaysha's hands had dropped from her as if her skin had burned him. He evn avoided her eyes, and they were surprised to hear his voice sound so feral.

"Don't suggest such a thing," he snapped. Kagome opened her mouth to argue, but his voice grew louder. "Don't! I don't want to hear it! My baby is _not_ sealed away somewhere, do you understand me, Kagome? I was _awake_ for those fifty years! I could feel everything, every drop of rain that fell on me, every bug that landed on my nose that I couldn't fight off, every mosquito bite, every comment that someone made while passing by me… it was torture enough for fifty years! Do you really want our daughter to have gone through all of that for ten times that amount of time?"

"No… no…" Kagome said, shaking. He bottom lip began to shake. Inuyasha stared at her and then crushed his wife to his chest fiercely, promising that he would find Kaede, even if it killed him.

"You don't have to look very far," a new voice sad. Kagome blanched at the sound of the voice. Everyone turned to see two new people approaching, the taller man looking around in case anyone was lurking nearby. The dying sunlight reflecting off of red hair revealed the identity of the younger boy.

"Jou! What are you doing here?" Kei asked, rushing forward to greet her friend. Jou smiled at her and hugged her back.

"I told Dad, like I promised, Angel. He told me everything, about the Sengoku Jidai… actually, he's been telling me since I was a baby, but I had never believed him. But when I told him about this, he told me where to find Kaede."

Kei watched with wide eyes as Jou's father walked towards Kagome, whose legs were visibly shaking. Her eyes were wide as she stared up at the stranger. He pulled off the police cap he was wearing, and smile shyly at Kagome. "Kagome…"

"Shippo…"

'Shippo!' Kei whirled around, barely hearing Shippo tell Jou he could relax and be himself. She watched in a mixture of fascination and horror as the ears pointed themselves, and his teeth elongated. A tail poked out shyly from behind his legs, bushy and white-tipped. His eyes were still as blue as ever.

He also looked only ten years old.

"Jou…" Kei growled.

"Don't blame me, Angel. Ever since you told me you believed in things like kitsunes, I wanted to tell you, but Daddy wouldn't let me."

Kei glared at him. "That's it!" she cried, pouncing him and pinning him to the ground before tickling him mercilessly.

Fukou sighed and rolled his eyes. He turned his attention to Kagome, who was trying to get over the shock of seeing Shippo all grown up. "Shippo," he said, "my memories are still a little confused. If Jou's a kitsune, then why did he grow up with us?"

Shippo smile at his reincarnated friend. "Because it was all an illusion. We can make ourselves illusions to pass as humans, but it requires power, and control, both of which take time. Jou there can only manage about ten years, more or less. So you watched him grow up from the age of six to the age of seventeen. After this year, he would have gotten an acceptance to a university overseas, and he could have started all over again. I have to keep him in the school system, you see, so that he can have companionship. Myself, I can keep an illusion for more than a full human lifespan, but that would be immoral. Can you imagine me going to high school and flirting with human girls who are almost five hundred and fifty years my junior?"

"No," he grinned. "I can't."

"Shut up, both of you," Inuyasha growled. His arms were still around Kagome, protecting her. "Where the hell is my daughter?"

"Right there," Shippo said, gesturing to the tree.

They all looked at him like he was nuts, except for Kei, who grinned triumphantly. "I was right. There is someone asleep in the tree…" she whispered to herself.

"You sealed up my daughter?" Inuyasha yelled and lunged at Shippo, his claws outstretched. Fukou caught Kagome and steadied her. "You put her in that prison? You… you…. I'm going to rip your head off of your shoulders, Shippo!"

Kagome patted Fuu's arm reassuringly. "I'm okay now. Let me up. I know how to get her out of that tree."

"Are you certain?"

"Yes… Haven't you noticed that unsealing things and purifying things seem to be my specialty?" she joked. While Inuyasha still chased Shippo, Kagome approached the tree. Kei, Jou, and Fukou, watching, gripped each other's hands tightly. They watched as Kagome began to turn the slightest shade of glowing, glittering pink. She slowly walked forward, arms outstretched. She slowly reached for the tree… and, like a ghost, her arms passed right through the tree. The three people watching couldn't help it: they gasped as she reached further into the tree.

Even Shippo and Inuyasha stopped fighting, watching in awe as Kagome reached into the tree, and then began to step back. Inuyasha cried out his daughter's name when he saw his daughter, possessed by the same ethereal pink glow which had surrounded Kagome, emerge from the tree and held in the hands of his wife. His bare feet skidded on the ground as he rushed to the tree.

"Kaede!"

Shivers ran up Kei's spine when she heard the fear and hope in Inuyasha's voice.

Kagome fell to the ground as she finished pulling her daughter from the tree. Kaede fell with her. She was crying, breathing heavily. She was brushing her daughter's hair as Inuyasha came to a stop beside them, falling over them and crying silently. Kaede was clutching the sword in her hands. He tore it form her grasp and flung it to the side, checking his daughter over for injuries and holding her hands. When she suddenly yawned, everyone jumped, even Inuyasha. Kaede finished yawning and then stared up at her parents.

"Daddy," she said, making Inuyasha cry harder. Kaede reached out a hand and touched her father's cheek. She was every bit as alive, young, and healthy, as she had been when she had disappeared. "Daddy, don't cry. I'm sorry I took the sword without asking you. I just wanted to practice making the sword transform. I didn't mean to get caught back in the Sengoku Jidai! But I had the most amazing time there, Daddy!"

Feeling like they were intruding, Jou, Kei, and Fuu turned and began walking away, their steps in stride with each other. Kei, between the two most important young men in her life, grinned. Shippo had disappeared, but she knew that he'd be back, and he'd no doubt get into their lives and hearts once more.

"What should we tonight, boys?" she asked them, forgetting that one of the boys was really a ten year old kitsune who was really sixty human years old. She grinned, feeling ecstatic. Everything was perfect in the world, if only for one glorious night. "There's that new movie that's coming out. But it's rater R, Jou, so you can't see it."

"Aww! Come on!" Jou whined.

"Personally, I think that we should practice fighting. Obviously there are demons still around, and given the fact that we've been friends with one of them since we were in grade school, I think it's time that we practice our abilities to discover yaki. And we have the perfect specimen right here."

"Don't mess with me, Fuu," Jou warned. He grinned at the both of them. "I think we should go and call over Shin and ask him to hang out with us. Forget going to the movies. Dad has to work tonight. Let's all go over to my house and pig out on pie. Unless you two are worried about losing your lady-like figures."

"Jou, if you eat anything like your dad, you could eat us out of house and home," Fuu teased. Kei just reached over and ruffled Jou's hair as Fuu thought of something else. "You know, I do have that book Sesshomaru-sama gave me. We could read it tonight, each of us taking a turn to read a passage from the book. It might tell us what happened to Kaede."

"I think that's the best idea yet!"

"As long as we can also have Shin and pie!" Jou said loudly, catching the excitement.

"I think that can be arranged," Kei laughed. She looked up at Fukou and smiled at him. "Have I told you yet today that I love you?" He shook his head no, and she rectified it then and there.

"I love you, Fuu."

"I love you Sango… I mean, Kei… I mean… Damn. This is going to take a while to get used to, you know that?"

-Fin


End file.
